A new chapter
by Monkeymad1
Summary: A story about Polly, her past, present and future. ps i'm dyslexic, so sorry if the spelling and grammar is bad. Enjoy and please read and review :)
1. Chapter 1

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEE-"Ohh shut up! I'm awake already" the young girl grumbled, sitting up in bed.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, Polly stood up and walked to the small window on the far side of the room, absentmindedly taking in the weather and surroundings.

'Right, shower, breakfast, get dressed…' she was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of the letterbox shutting and post landing on the floor.

20 minutes later and she was finally ready. Grabbing her coat and bag, scooping the post up and flicking it through it, when the letterbox went again.

"Strange, posts just come" Polly mumbled, reaching down to get it. But the delivery wasn't a letter, or a parcel, or one of those flyer things. It was a clear plastic bag filled with white powder, with a note attached. The note read 'Love Mum x'.

"No, no no, not now, please, not now. I can't handle this now Mum" her eyes leaked tears as she was suddenly taken to a place and a time many years ago. A time she'd rather forget.

*Flashback*

_Polly's mother brushed past her like she wasn't there. The tiny girl followed her, reaching out her arms to her for a hug._

"_Leave me alone will you! Can't you see I'm busy?" her mother snapped, hitting Polly hard across the face before pulling out a needle and a clear packet of white powder…_

*End flashback*

Stuffing the packet in her bag, Polly locked the front door and started her car. She could only hope her mother didn't turn up at work. She'd never told Jeff and Dixie anything about her past, or anyone else for that matter.


	2. Chapter 2

As she drove to work, Polly's thoughts kept wondering back to memories of her childhood. She wished they wouldn't, it hadn't been the best time for her.

*Flashback*

_Polly lay curled into a tight ball in the far corner of her bedroom, her tiny hands were curled into fists covering her tear stained face and her eyes were closed. She didn't dare open them, for she was too frightened of what she might see if she did. _

_She could feel the warm blood trickling down her forehead from her scalp, from where she had been thrown none too gently against the garden wall only minutes ago. Then she had run, into her bedroom and hadn't moved since. _

_Polly didn't understand why her mother was so angry with her…_

*End flashback*

Polly felt a shiver go down her spine as the memory faded. How had her mother found her again? And why had she chosen now to turn up? She had had virtually no contact with her since she was 15 and her mother had turned up at the school gates, in search of money for drugs. That meeting hadn't gone too well…

Touching an old scar on her arm, she turned off the engine, put the keys in her bag and walked towards the ambulance bay.

"Morning guys" Polly's cheerful voice radiated throughout the station, quickly hiding

the fact that anything was wrong.

"Morning Pol" Dixie and Jeff replied in unison, both laughing at the expression on the other's face.

Jeff and Dixie were both very fond of Polly, and could be quite protective of her if need be.

The shift was unusually uneventful, with only a head injury, broken leg and other minor injuries. It was quiet, too quiet, and Polly frequently felt that someone other than her paramedic partner was watching her.

Dixie walked into the rec room where Polly was sitting, staring at the floor, scowling.

"You alright sweetheart? You're quiet"

This made the young girl jump and look up, as if she had only just registered her friend's presence.

Dixie watched as Polly's eyes darted around the room, taking in details of where she was, before turning to face her and smiling.

"Yeah, yeah, fine thanks" she replied, then turning her gaze back to the floor.

Dixie was beginning to think something was wrong, but decided to leave it for now. Besides, she had no idea what could be going on.


	3. Chapter 3

"Polly? Hey, wait up, kid!" Polly stopped and turned slightly to see Jeff running towards her.

"What?"

"You left your phone. You okay?" Jeff asked, looking at her, a worried expression on his face. She had been unusually quiet all day; it wasn't like her at all.

"Look, thanks for bringing my phone, but I'm fine" Polly said, avoiding eye contact. Once her colleague was out of earshot she added "You have no idea".

"Something is definitely up with her" Jeff said to Dixie, walking in to the rec room. "When is she ever this quiet?"

"When she's thinking about something. But I agree, this ain't her mate"

Polly unlocked the front and walked in, quickly collapsing onto a chair, breathing heavily and looking nervously out of the window. All the way home, she could have sworn that there was a car following her. But now, it was nowhere to be seen. Had she imagined it?

Her head was pounding as thoughts, memories and questions all raced through her mind. Why was she here? Actually, she could make a pretty good guess at that-money was bound to be involved. Was her mother here to stay? And was she still with that thug - Devin?

Hopefully not, for however bad her mother was, Devin was five times worse. Other than that, they were pretty evenly matched- both were used to getting their own way and would to go to any lengths necessary to get it.

Compared to the meetings she had had with Devin when she was 15 years old, her undoubtedly awful childhood seem fairly mild. Even the mere thought of his name made Polly tremble, and protectively wrap her arms around herself.

For them, kidnapping, ransoms and mild to extreme violence were just pat and parcel of daily life.

A knock at the door startled Polly, bringing her out of her almost trance-like state. Getting up, she walked tentatively towards the door and peered through the glass window to see who was there.

On seeing it was neither Devin or her mother, she let out a breath that she didn't realise she'd been holding. But, looking again, she didn't recognise them either. Whoever they were, they weren't going away. She may as well open the door.

"OI! You Polly?" a young lad, 17, 18 possibly, was stood on the doorstep, an menacing glint in his eyes as he looked her up and down.

She nodded "Who wants to know?" hoping that she sounded braver than she felt at that moment.

"Listen love, don't give me cheek, I'm just here to deliver a message, alright? From a Devin Rickshaw. Do us a favour and get back to him will you?"

In shock, Polly simply nodded, unsure of what to say to him. Well, what was there to say? She was in trouble, and more than she knew.

"Right that's me off, cya darling" with that, the boy departed, shutting the door behind him.

Polly glanced at the note and the second clear packet filled with powder. Looking closer, she could see that there wasn't just powder in there - what was it? Tablets, by the look of it; assorted small, round, colourful pills littered the bottom of the bag.

Even without reading the note, the message was clear enough - they wanted her to deal drugs.

The note read 'Dear Polly, I don't think I need to write down what we need you to do, the bag should be enough of a clue! Don't contact us, we'll contact you. Devin.

"No, no, no, not again, not again." Fear got the better of the young girl and she dropped to the cold stone floor, curling into a ball, fighting back tears.

*Flashback*

"_Look, kiddo, help me out here." On getting no response, Devin tried a different approach, "Okay, let me put this in simple terms for you: you give me what I want, I'll let you go"_

_Looking to the floor, Polly nodded. She didn't have any other choice, if she didn't do what he said, he would put her in hospital, she knew that from a previous night._

_Instinctively, she pulled away when he touched her, but instantly regretted it when his grip tightened around her throat, making it increasingly hard for her to breathe. The second time, she co-operated with him, simply blanking out what was happening to her as he forced himself into her, and his grip loosened again._

*End flashback*

Still lying on the floor, Polly suddenly awoke from the nightmare, crying and shaking, desperately trying to regain control of her breathing.

After a few minutes, her breathing was almost back to normal. Polly glanced at the clock on top of the cupboard (11:57 PM) – had she really been down there that long?

Sighing, she slowly stood up and walked into her bedroom, perching on the edge of her bed.

Her phone was in her line of vision, should she ring Dixie or Jeff? She had seen earlier that they were both concerned about her, and she hated that, she knew that they had their fair share of problems and she didn't want to be a problem or a burden to them.


	4. Chapter 4

Polly jumped as her phone rang, mentally cursing herself for not turning the volume down, as she picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Polly? It's Devin"

"Right"

"I trust you got my delivery, very reliable that young lad"

"Mmhmm"

"Right, I'll get to the point. Are you gonna help us out or not?"

Polly swallowed, taking a deep breath before replying "Not, sorry"

"You sure? This will be a whole load easier if you co-operate, you know." Devin paused for a moment; on getting no response from Polly he added "Fine, have it your way, kid! This isn't over, Polly, and you've just made this a lot worse on yourself. Why not just say yes?"

"Why? Because I've seen and experience firsthand the damage it can do to people's lives!" Polly almost shouted her final sentence, feeling her blood boil.

"Well, you can't say you weren't warned. I'll see you later. And no police, neither. You do remember what happened last time the police were involved, don't you?" he laughed, before hanging up.

Polly decided to walk into work, she had 25 minutes before she had to start her shift and she needed to clear her head.

"Shit! I'm going to be late" she muttered, checking her watch. She had 15 minutes, and a quarter of a mile left; she would have to run.

Sprinting the final few metres into the ambulance bay and lost in her thoughts, she bumped into Dixie.

"Sorry, Dixie! Am I late?"

"Nope, bang on time" Dixie smiled, "But you'd probably better go and get ready though"

"Okay, who am I on with?"

"Me"

"Right, I'll see you in a minute then"

Her second shift of the week was slightly more exciting than that of her first; a stabbing, a dog attack and another head injury. Polly preferred it when it was like that; it took her mind off everything else that was slowly coming into play around her.

She couldn't stop thinking about the phone call, Devin had said see you later, was he going to turn up at work?

Devin and Polly's mum, April, walked into the ambulance bay, looking around for Polly. Dixie spotted them loitering and approached them.

"Excuse me, can I help you?"

"Yeah, I'm looking for my daughter, she works here"

"Okay, what's your daughter's name?"

"Polly. Polly Emmerson"

"Right, if you'd like to wait there, I'll see if I can find her for you"

Dixie didn't know what to think, Polly had never mentioned her mother before. She walked into the rec room and sat down next to her friend.

"Pol? There's someone here asking to see you"

"Who?"

"Says she's your mum, there's some bloke with her too. Polly, what's going on? You haven't been yourself all day, or yesterday." Dixie felt bad for the girl, as soon as she had told her that it was her mum, or so she claimed, a look of terror had crossed her features.

"I don't know, I don't know. I don't want to see her, or him!"

"Sure?"

Suddenly everything got too much for Polly and she burst into tears, allowing Dixie to comfort her by pulling her into a hug and running her fingers through her hair.

"Alright, darling, alright. You're okay. Do you want me to get rid of them?" Dixie waited until she nodded in response before getting up and exciting the room

Finally, the end of her shift. Pulling on her jacket and grabbing her bag, Polly went to exit the ambulance bay and start walking home.

But before she had left, she was approached by Jeff and Dixie.

"Ready to go, kid?" Jeff asked, smiling gently at her and linking his arm with hers, frowning when she jumped and pulled away from him.

"Go where?" Polly questioned, confused. What was he on about?

"Come on, sweetheart, you're staying with us for a bit" Dixie explained softly, trying not to make any sudden movements so as not to startle her again.

"What? Why? What's going on?" Polly asked.

"Look, it's alright, I'd just be happier if you were with us, okay?" Dixie said, wondering how she was going to explain this to her.

"Why?"

"Well, those people that were here looking for you?"

"Yeah, what about them?"

"Well, let's just say they weren't too happy that they couldn't see you."

"That's an understatement, Dix, that bloke had you pinned up against the wall!" Jeff said suddenly, then immediately regretting it.

"Jeffrey! You're not helping!" Dixie hissed, glaring daggers at him, before turning to face Polly again.

The same look of fear came over Polly's face as she heard this, and both Dixie and Jeff noticed that she started shaking. "Are you alright? I'm sorry, I should have seen them, I should have seen them!"

"Polly, Polly! Its okay, I'm alright. But you see why we want you to stop with us for a bit. Goodness only knows what they wanted with you, but if that's what they're like with members of the public, I don't want you near them, Polly."

The young girl simply nodded, looking to the floor, focusing her attention on a tiny speck of dirt.

Jeff spoke up again, this time thinking carefully before he opened his mouth "Has this happened before?" judging by how she looked up momentarily, biting her lip, then looked down to the floor again, he took that as a yes. "Ohh, Pol. You need to call the police, princess"

"No, no, no! No police, no police!" Polly shouted, sounding a lot braver than she felt.

"Why not sweetheart? They can help you" Dixie said, trying to get Polly to make eye contact, but to no avail. She continued to stare at the floor.

"Because I don't want you to get hurt! You don't know what they're like, what they're capable of! You don't know anything about my past, do you?"

Both shook their heads, it was true; Polly had never once mentioned her childhood.

There was silence for a moment before the technician spoke again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"Polly said, tears welling up in her eyes.

"No, no, you're okay, don't worry love. Come on, lets get home eh?" Dixie smiled as Polly nodded and began walking alongside her and Jeff.


	5. Chapter 5

Polly was sat on the couch, Dixie and Jeff either side of her, watching the news. Throughout it, she had been lost in her thoughts; until a report came on that showed footage of a robbery. The sudden loud noise combined with the images on the screen frightened her and she moved swiftly from the couch to the floor, curling into the foetal position, squeezing her eyes tightly shut and putting her hands over her ears.

Dixie and Jeff exchanged glances before Jeff went and sat next to her, gently putting his hand in hers, seeming relieved that she didn't pull away.

"Pol? Polly? It's Jeff. Its okay, you're safe, can you look at me?"

Polly shifted her gaze to make eye contact with Jeff, but stayed completely still.

"Good girl, are you going to come and sit back down? You can't be too comfy on the floor…"

She allowed him to help sit her up as she continued to look at him. Reaching out her arms to him, Jeff scooped her up in his arms, carrying her over to the couch and then carefully put her down.

Normally, Polly would have been embarrassed, but, bit by bit, right now her mind was shutting itself off from the outside world, trying to protect her from things yet to happen.

She wouldn't have known how to respond anyway; she had never really known as a child what it meant to be cared for. The only interest her mother had had in her was for violent purposes. She had certainly never shown her any love or affection, so Polly had had to find this elsewhere. School.

*Flashback*

_7:30am. Miss Eastwood, her reception class teacher, arrived at the school but wasn't too surprised to see Polly sat on the doorstep of her classroom, her mother nowhere in sight. It wasn't the first time, and she didn't think it would be the last. _

"_Hiya Polly! What you are doing here so early then petal?" her teacher asked her, smiling as the young girl instantly jumped up and wrapped her arms around her._

"_No mummy?" Polly shook her head, taking hold of her teacher's hand "Right, come on then kiddo lets get you sorted" said Miss Eastwood, unlocking the classroom door and leading her in._

"_Right, Pol, have you had any breakfast?" her teacher questioned, although she suspected that she already knew the answer. Her guess was confirmed when Polly shook her head again. _

_Looking properly at her, she could see how tiny she was, small for her age, but hardly any muscle at all on her bones. Still, that wasn't too surprising either. _

_When asked if she had had breakfast or tea she would either shake her head or say, truthfully, that she'd eaten at her neighbour's house._

_They were a lovely middle aged couple, with two children of their own. They often took Polly in to feed her and to wash her clothes. They sometimes picked her up from school if her mother had gone awall. _

"_Right, let's get you some then" Miss Eastwood commented, reaching into the cupboard to grab the box of cereal. _

_Setting the bowl of cereal and glass of milk in front of the girl, she busied herself with finding her lesson plans for the day, only just hearing Polly's barely audible reply._

"_Thank you" she whispered._

"_You're welcome love."_

_She was really worried about the young girl; the school had been in touch with social services countless times about her, but there never seemed to be enough evidence for her to be moved away from her mother._

*End flashback*

Polly felt her eyes becoming heavy as the urge to sleep became more and more apparent.

"I'm going to bed" she said, getting up and starting to walk up the stairs to the spare room.

"Okay, love, sleep well" Dixie called after her, sighing heavily as she looked to Jeff.

It was now very obvious that there was a lot going on that they didn't know about, but Polly still wouldn't say anything about what had happened to her, most likely out of fear of what would happen if she did.

Polly was exhausted from the day's events and fell asleep almost immediately, although her sleep was not by any means peaceful; she frequently kicked and lashed out, fighting off someone who wasn't there.

Dixie was worried about her, tossing and turning until she finally fell into a light sleep.

A couple of hours later, she heard a scream. Polly. Getting up and pulling on her dressing gown, she walked into the spare room to see Polly sat up in her bed, her eyes taking in every detail of the room.

As Dixie sat down next to her on the bed, Polly moved closer to her, resting her head on her shoulder and quickly falling asleep again. Dixie smiled, laying her back down and waiting for a few moments to check she was asleep before going back to her own bed.

Early the next morning, things were happening as normal in the Collier household as everyone came downstairs to get some breakfast.

"Pol, you going to be alright to work today?" Jeff called over to her.

"Yeah, thanks, I'll be fine" she replied, giving him a small smile as she started to eat.

Polly waited outside the front door as Dixie and Jeff got their things together, scanning the row of parked cars absentmindedly. Her mind focused on one, a black van rather than car- wasn't that Devin's?

She was too busy looking at the vehicle that she didn't notice the person stood behind her until her grabbed her wrists, cuffing them behind her back.

She turned to look at her attacker, recognising him instantly. Devin.

"HELP!" she screamed, desperately looking around for someone. She was about to scream again when he placed a drug laced cloth over her nose and mouth, instantly knocking her unconscious. Catching her before she fell, he picked up and put in the back of the van and drove away.

Dixie had heard the scream and ran outside, panicking when she couldn't see Polly and heard the sound of an engine driving away.

"Jeff!"

"Hey, hey what's wrong?"

"It's Polly, Jeff, she's gone. We were supposed to be looking after her and she's gone!"


	6. Chapter 6

The effects of the drug began to wear off as Polly slowly started to gain consciousness again.

She blinked rapidly several times but couldn't see anything because of the dark blindfold covering her eyes.

"Mmpph!" she began to panic as she suddenly remembered what had happened. She coughed a few times before realising that where a large piece of cloth wedged into her mouth which was secured another strip of cloth tied around her head, preventing her from screaming out.

"She's awake!" Polly heard her mother shout; she hadn't heard that voice in a while, although that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"Right, finish tying her up, then we can get going" Devin yelled back to her.

April, Polly's mother, walked over to her, producing bundles of rope from her pocket and dropping them on the floor. She secured the girl's arms further by tying her elbows and upper arms, bound her ankles and knees before rolling her onto her stomach.

She used another rope that connected the ropes on her wrists and ankles, then attached a piece of rope to the cloth gag and secured it to the others, pulling her head back to further restrict her movement.

After Polly had cried out in pain, April smiled and said:

"You can struggle, sweetheart, but you're not going anywhere for a while. At least not until we decide to move you"

Finally, she pulled out a long strip of thick cloth and some cotton wool balls.

"Now you can enjoy your time with us in the silence and the darkness" she laughed evilly. "We've got to go out, but don't worry, we'll be back later"

By stuffing the cotton wool balls into Polly's ears and wrapping the cloth around her head tightly to keep them in place, she succeeded in cutting off the young girl's hearing.

Now the sharpest bits of sensory information that Polly had were; the cold, hard floor she was lying on, the slight odour of the room, the taste of the gag in her mouth and the pain in her limbs from the ropes.

Meanwhile, back at the ambulance station, Dixie was pacing the floor in her office; she'd been at it for about half an hour already. Jeff sat watching her from the other end of the room, he was sure that she was going to wear the carpet out soon. He knew why she was doing it though; that's what she always did when she was worried about something, or in this case, someone.

"Dix, sit down, you're only going to make yourself dizzy doing that"

Dixie sighed, glaring at him before pulling her phone out from a drawer in her desk and dialling Polly's number for the umpteenth time that morning.

"Urgh, why isn't she picking up?" Dixie said, the worry becoming more obvious now in her voice as she slammed her phone down on the desk. What she didn't know was that Polly couldn't hear her phone ringing only a few feet from her, and she certainly couldn't move to get it.

Calling back, she decided to leave a message on Polly's answerphone:

"Hiya Polly, its Dixie. Where are you? Are you alright? Are you hurt? Please, love, just call me back when you get this, tell me you're safe! Please, Polly, we're really worried about you; me, Jeff and everyone else"

With that, she hung up, bursting into tears not knowing what else to do and burying her head in her hands.

Jeff came over to her, pulling her into a hug and kissing the top of her head.

"C'mon, Dix, we'll find her. And if we don't, the police will"

"Right, because you can really promise that, can't you?!"

Polly tried to roll onto her side, to try and take some of the pressure off of her ribs. When she couldn't, she cried out in pain and frustration, tears flowing freely down her face. It hurt. She wanted to get out of the ropes, out of wherever she was being held. She wanted Dixie and Jeff, or anyone, to find her and get her out of there, tell her she was going to be alright, that they'd look after her.

She had long since given up on the fleeting idea that her Mum and Devin wouldn't hurt her - she knew them far better than that.

She tried again a few more times to roll onto her side and finally she succeeded, taking a series of deep breaths in order to try and get her breathing under control.

Devin pulled the black van onto the driveway of the abandoned storage building, turned off the engine, and he and April got out and walked inside. Unbeknownst to them, a neighbour had seen them before; he knew what they were like.

April walked over to Polly, smiling at her handiwork as she knelt down beside her daughter. At this, Polly jumped; she had had no idea that anyone was there. April removed the cloth from the young girl's mouth, then opened a bottle of water and put it to her lips, tilting it slightly so she could drink.

Polly swallowed it gratefully; she had no idea when she would be given any more water.

Before she had chance to scream, April quickly replaced the gag, once more tying it tightly at the back of her head, making Polly violently cough again.

"Right, that's her sorted for the night. At least now she won't die on us" April muttered to Devin, sitting down next to him and taking the needle and packet of powder he offered to her.

Finally, after a long stretch of time that Polly guessed was night- with no hearing or sight, it was impossible for her to tell – she was awoken by someone kicking her, hard, in her side, making her cry out in pain.

But it didn't stop there. Unfortunately, she wasn't surprised, it never did. Devin repeatedly hit her right arm with what she assumed to be a baseball bat. But she didn't yelp or scream, figuring that it would only make things a lot worse for her if she did.

Instead, she stayed silent, biting down on the gag that was still stuffed in her mouth.

Eventually he gave up on attacking her arm, and hit her a few times around her head with it, making her feel dizzy and nauseous. Then he produced a knife from his pocket, turned her onto her stomach again and began to carve something into her back.

The message read: 'This isn't over!'

The pain was now too much for Polly to bear and she screamed as loud as she could through the gag, hoping that someone, anyone would hear her and raise the alarm.

Luckily for her, someone had heard her. The same neighbour that had recognised Devin and April earlier. After he had heard someone scream, he knew he had to call the police.

Devin hit her around the head again, knocking her unconscious once more.

"Right, we need to go, come on!" April called over to Devin, beckoning to him to leave. They had just driven off when the police arrived.

"Hello, sir, you called 999?" a male officer asked the neighbour that had called them out.

"Erm, yeah, there's someone in there, I don't know who but I heard them screaming. More than once, over and over!" he babbled, panicking slightly now.

"Hello, police, anyone in here?" no reply. They knocked the door down, running inside to look for the girl.

Soon after, they found her. Sprinting to her, they spoke to Polly, but she couldn't hear them.

She began to regain consciousness again, moaning and trying to move.

"Okay, she's awake, poor thing" the female officer said to her colleague, whilst unwinding the cloth from over her eyes and ears, allowing Polly to look at her.

Polly focused immediately on the woman in front of her, she had been found! Her head was spinning and she felt like she was going to be sick.

"Okay, love, we're going to untie you and get you out of here now, alright?" she asked the terrified young girl, not really expecting an answer.

She untied the gag and took it out of her mouth, placing it an evidence bag.

"We're going to need an ambulance, Patrick" she shouted to her colleague, as Polly was violently sick, then began to cry, her breath coming in ragged sobs.

"Alright, darling, okay" she soothed, moving her hair out of her face and smiling sweetly at her.

"Ambulance is on its way!" he called back.


	7. Chapter 7

Dixie and Jeff had been given the call to the storage place that Polly was at, and had just arrived.

Pulling up on the drive, Jeff shouted to the officer "Hi mate, where is she?"

"In here" he replied "Unknown female, about 22/23 years of age. She was tied up when we got here, but due to possible injuries, we didn't want to untie her. Poor girl's absolutely terrified; she hasn't said a word to myself or my colleague since we arrived. Ohh and she's been sick twice as well." He led the paramedics to where Polly was, the female officer sat next to her, stroking her hair and talking softly to her to try and calm her.

"Polly!" Dixie shouted, running over to her, wiping away a tear.

"Do you know her?" the female officer asked her.

"Yeah she's a trainee paramedic at Holby" Dixie explained, then turned back to Polly, who was now staring intently at her. "Good girl, alright sweetheart, we're gonna have you out of here in no time, okay?"

"Jeff, can you get a board and collar please mate? And a frac-pac too?" Dixie called to him, examining her friend.

"Okay, Pol, I'm going to give you some pain relief, alright? Sharp scratch" she said as she inserted the I.V. line into the back of her hand and gave her some morphine.

Jeff came back in, putting the equipment down on the floor and crouched down next to Dixie.

"How're you doing, princess?" he smiled, looking at Polly.

"Not great. I've given her 10 of morphine, but she has a nasty wound on her back, she's covered in cuts and burns and bruises, and well. Her arm is a real mess, Jeff, it'll definetly need surgery"

"Right now though, we need to untie you and get you on the board, alright Pol?" looking back to Dixie he added "and the faster the better."

Jeff moved behind Polly and helped Dixie and the officers to untie her. Squinting, he scowled when he saw the writing carved in her back 'This isn't over!'

"Lovely" Dixie muttered when Jeff pointed it out to her whilst she was dressing the wound, not really wanting to draw Polly's attention to that just yet.

Soon, they had got her strapped onto the spinal board and got her arm strapped up, and they were ready to go.

"Okay, on my count. 1, 2, 3…" Jeff said, as they made sure Polly was safely strapped in the back of the ambulance, then he made his way to the driver's seat, thanking the police for their help.

Polly stared up at the ceiling, well she couldn't really look anywhere else. She suddenly cried out as the pain relief wore off and a fresh wave of pain hit her, making Dixie look up.

"Okay, Pol, I'm going to give you some more pain relief now love. Good girl"

Polly visibly relaxed as the morphine started to take effect. Still not saying a word, she reached out to Dixie with her good hand. Dixie smiled at her, taking the offered hand, not really knowing what to say to her.

She didn't have time to think of a suitable reply as they pulled into the E.D. ambulance bay.

"We're here!" Jeff called to them, getting out and running to the back of the ambulance to help Dixie.

Wheeling the trolley in, Zoe came over to them.

"Okay, what have we got, guys?" she asked, before noticing Polly. "What happened?" she gasped.

"We don't really know, she was tied up in an old storage building when we got there. Right, Polly Emmerson, 23 years old, nasty wound on her back, few minor cuts and bruises. Fracture and dislocation to right shoulder, confirmed multiple fractures throughout the rest of the arm. Possible head injury. She's had 15 of morphine…" Jeff told Zoe as she led them into resus.

"Okay, sweetheart, we're gonna get you sorted now, okay?" Dixie asked Polly softly, squeezing her hand.

They had lost her once, and Dixie wasn't about to let that happen again.


	8. Chapter 8

Polly lay on the hospital bed in resus, they were still waiting for the go ahead from theatre. Her arm was in a temporary cast until then, which made things more comfortable, and the CT scan had fortunately showed up no head or spinal injuries, but, due to the nature of the incident, they didn't want to take any chances.

Dixie was sat on a chair next to her bed, she hadn't moved once since they'd bought Polly in earlier. Jeff was around somewhere, probably gone to get a coffee.

Polly tried to sit herself up, she didn't want to lie down all the time, but struggled to do so because of her arm and the stinging pain in her back.

Dixie noticed this, moving quickly to support her, then gently putting her arm around her good shoulder.

"You alright darling?"

"Yeah, thanks, Dix. Just bored of lying down!"

"Yeah, I know, you should rest though"

"I know, I know, I need to rest, you're not the one being told it though Dixie!" Polly shouted at her colleague. Dixie sighed, walking out the room; she knew Polly didn't mean to react like that, she didn't mean it. She'd been through a hell of a lot these last couple of weeks; she was bound to be angry. Not to mention exhausted, frightened, in pain and just generally shaken up by everything she'd been through; nobody should have to go through that she thought, especially not someone as sweet and kind as Polly.

Jeff returned with the coffees, handing one to Dixie. He was about to head back into resus to see Polly when she stopped him.

"Thanks mate, for the coffee. But, just leave her for a bit eh? She needs some space"

"What happened Dix?"

"I just told her that she should be resting and she flipped"

"Right, how about we take this to the staffroom then?" Jeff asked, and Dixie nodded, following him. Polly needed time to calm down and, hopefully, time to sleep.

Polly sighed; she had regretted shouting at Dixie almost instantly. Deep down, she knew that she had meant well. Her head was pounding, her thoughts and emotions were all over the place; sleep deprivation really didn't help with that.

Trying to relax, she scowled and squeezed her eyes tight shut as flashbacks of the past few days came to her, trying but failing to block them out.

*Flashback*

_On one of the days when her mother decided to restore her hearing for a while, Polly could hear Devin and April talking. _

"_Why do we need her anyway? She'll just be in the way!" April grumbled._

"_Because, April, she is our secret weapon. Our wild card, if you like"_

"_What are you on about?"_

"_Nobody would suspect her, would they? Little miss goody goody over there, got a good job, she comes across as being fairly innocent, right?"_

"_Right, but how does that help us?"_

"_Well, first we need to make her realise what happens when she doesn't do as she is told, thought she would've learnt that last time! We need to scare her, and then she won't dare go to the cops. Then, we have her right where we want her"_

"_Get to the point, Devin"_

"_We need to get the drugs. To get them, we need money. She's gonna be our little earner"_

"_What did you have in mind?"_

"_Well, she's sorta pretty looking, ain't she? People would pay good money to get with her…_

*End flashback*

Polly felt her throat tighten and her breathing becoming ever more difficult. Placing the oxygen mask over her mouth and nose, made it a tiny bit easier to breathe.

However, all her paramedic training left her and she panicked, making her breathing worse again. This in turn made her feel dizzy and lightheaded, and the room started to spin at an unthinkable pace, all the while the overhead lights seemed to flicker, making her eyes sting.

She scratched at her throat, urging her breathing and heart rate to slow down. She could feel herself sweating, but shaking at the same time.

Luckily, at that moment, Zoe had noticed that something wasn't right, rushing over to her.

"Polly? Polly, its Zoe, can you hear me?" the technician nodded her head slightly.

"Alright, good girl, can you look at me? That's it, look at me, good girl…"

Polly moved so she was looking Zoe in the eyes "W-what's happening?"

"You're having a panic attack, Polly. It's alright, just try and slow down your breathing for me…Jessica, can you track down Jeff and Dixie for me? Thanks!"

Zoe adjusted the switch on the wall, so that Polly was getting more oxygen. After a worrying few minutes, her breathing improved and it returned to a more regular pattern, much to the girl's relief.

"D-don't l-leave me…" she croaked, holding on tightly to Zoe's hand with her own good (left) hand.

"I'm not going anywhere, alright? Jessica's gone to find Jeff and Dixie for you; I'll stay with you until they get here." She waited until Polly nodded before continuing "what bought that on, then?" she asked sympathetically, not fully expecting the girl to answer her.

Jessica came back in, Jeff and Dixie following behind her.

"Pol? You alright princess?" Jeff asked, sitting on the nearest chair and taking hold of her hand. Looking properly at her for the first time in a while, he could see how rundown she looked; there were big dark bags under her eyes, she clearly hadn't been sleeping properly for a long time, she'd lost weight and she was deathly pale.

"Yeah, yeah, dizzy though" she mumbled, the room was still spinning and it was making her feel nauseous.

Looking to Zoe for an explanation, she mouthed 'panic attack'.

"It'll pass darling" Dixie said soothingly, rubbing small circles on her back "anything from theatre yet?"

Jessica shook her head "Not yet, I'll get onto them now"

"I'm sorry, for shouting and, you know…" Polly muttered, looking to the floor.

"It's alright, forget it. You're exhausted, Polly, you need to sleep"

Polly lay back on the bed, resting her head on the pillow, keeping hold of Jeff's hand and smiling when Dixie put her hand put her hand on top of Jeff's.

That gesture said a lot, it said that were all in this together, that they would both support her whatever happened.

**A/N thank you for the reviews, and to 4444 for help and ideas with the story **** x**


	9. Chapter 9

A few hours later…

"Right, theatre's free!" Jessica shouted over to Zoe.

Nodding, she replied "Okay, let's get her up there…Mac!"

Polly could feel someone shaking her awake and she opened her eyes sleepily, to see Dixie looking at her.

"Its okay, its okay" Dixie sighed quietly, she had seen the panic flash over the young girl's features "They're going to take you up to theatre now, get your arm sorted…we'll there on the ward when you wake up, alright? Good girl"

"You'll be fine, kiddo; we'll see you later, yeah?" Jeff added, before nodding to Mac so that he could take her to theatre.

When Mac had taken her up to theatre, Jeff linked arms with Dixie, leading her out of resus.

"C'mon, Dix, Zoe said she'll tell us as soon she hears anything. She's gonna be in for a few hours to sort out her arm, so shall we go and get some grub?"

"Right, come on then, Jeffrey, let's get you fed shall we?" at this, Jeff grinned; Dixie really did know him far too well.

Once they had ordered, their conversation turned back to Polly.

"Who on earth, in their right minds, would do something like that? And to someone like Polly as well. Why Jeff, just why would they do that? What did or do they want with her?" Dixie was stopped from her rambling of questions by Jeff interrupting her.

"Dixie, love, I can't answer any of those questions apart from possibly the first one. Her mother and that git she was with seem a fairly plausible answer. If I ever got my hands on them…"

"Jeff, we don't know anything for sure, alright. Let's not jump to any conclusions here mate, we clearly don't know the half of what's been going on. Though I agree, I wouldn't put it past them…"

"Poor kid, whatever's going on, she's got a hell of a lot on her plate, eh? She's gonna need a lot of help…and I don't want her living her on her own until we know what's happening"

"No, no she's stopping with us again; and not getting abducted this time! Ohh great, the police are going to want to speak to her aren't they? And speak to us; still, at least they've been good enough to leave it until after her surgery.

Obviously, she won't be able to work until her arm's better, so I'll have to phone the agency, get a temporary paramedic in until then"

Their conversation was interrupted by the waiter coming to the table with their food "There you are, sir, madam. Enjoy your meals"

"Thanks mate" Jeff said, instantly tucking in to his food, not really realising how hungry he'd been.

Just as they were finishing their food, Dixie's phone rang. She pulled it out her pocket and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hiya Dixie, its Zoe. I've had the heads up from surgery; it's all gone really well. Polly's in recovery but you can see her in about an hour…" Zoe explained, giving her the ward details.

"Thanks Zoe. Right I'd better go, thanks for letting me know"

"No problem, bye"

"Bye"

"Right, what's happening then?" Jeff asked, looking intently at her, he obviously wanted to know how she was.

"It all went well, she's in recovery and we can see her in an hour. Which gives us enough to get everyone in the E.D to sign her card, come on Jeffrey" she said, laughing when she heard Jeff sigh loudly, she was on a mission and the end goal was in sight; he knew from both personal experience and through working with her that she wasn't the sort of person to give up easily either.

Walking over to the reception desk on the ward, Dixie approached the receptionist, flowers and signed get well soon card in hand "Hiya love, we're here to see Polly Emmerson. Whereabouts is she?"

"If you'd like to follow me, I'll take you through"

"Thank you"

"Okay, she's just in here, go on in"

"Thanks love" Dixie thanked her for her help, then went and sat down next to Polly, who was sleeping, but began to stir soon after Dixie and Jeff came in.

After a few moments, her eyelids fluttered open. She closed them again, squinting at the light coming in from the window.

"Hey" Dixie smiled "How're you feeling?"

"Urgh, tired, arm hurts but I'll live" Polly attempted to sit up but was firmly but gently pushed back down by Jeff.

"No, you rest, babe, lie back down"

Too tired to argue with him, she agreed, resting her head back down on the pillow. Her eyes began to close again, but she fought it, opening them and blinking rapidly several times.

"Pol, you need to sleep sweetheart, you look shattered" Dixie said kindly, stroking her hair, hoping to encourage her to sleep. "We'll still be here when you wake up"

Eventually, Polly did fall asleep, but instead of it being peaceful, it was riddled with nightmares and flashbacks from her past. Chuckling to herself when she noticed Jeff had now fallen asleep as well; she frowned when Polly began to mutter something incoherently over and over.

*Flashback*

_Polly, aged 6 years old, was sat on the step outside the front door to the house. It was the middle of winter and the weather was bitterly cold, snowflakes starting to fall from the sky._

_Shivering, the girl pulled her cotton cardigan tighter around her tiny frame, trying to keep as much body heat in as she could. She'd been sat there for half an hour, but she didn't dare ask to be let in. Not while mummy's boyfriend was there; she didn't like him and he didn't like her._

_Mummy's boyfriend was nasty, he hit her and he always stank of alcohol…mummy on her own wasn't very nice, Polly thought, scowling._

*End flashback*

Polly awoke suddenly, whimpering. Even though it had been so long ago, she remembered it as though it had been only a few months ago; the memories to this day frightened her. Looking around the room wildly, she relaxed when she saw Dixie.

"It's alright, I'm here, you're safe Polly" she soothed her, helping her to sit up and pulling her into a comforting hug. Polly accepted gratefully, leaning her head on her shoulder.

Once again, Polly's mind was in turmoil. She wanted to tell Dixie and Jeff about what had happened to her and about her childhood, but she could see how worried they were about her already.


	10. Chapter 10

"Polly?" the nurse said, looking at her "the police are here to see you"

This simple statement was enough to panic her, and she gripped Jeff's hand tightly, frantically shaking her head. She tried to get up, but was gently pushed back down by Jeff.

"C'mon, Pol, it's alright, they just want to talk to you." He sighed as Polly shook her head again, looking to the floor. This is where he needed Dixie, she could usually talk her round, but she'd gone back to get Polly some things from her house.

Now what could he do? Just as they had thought they were starting to make progress with her, she had suddenly and quickly regressed back to her earlier state of refusing to speak.

*Flashback*

"_Now, Polly, what did I tell you before? No police! But you don't flipping well listen, do you? Well, you've only made things worse for yourself, and you can't say you wasn't warned!" April's rant began to tail off as her attention turned to punishing her daughter._

_Polly felt herself tremble as her mother approached her. Without thinking of the possible consequences, she ducked out of her mother's reach, which only fuelled her anger. She realised too late that that had not been the right descision, as she fell to the floor. _

_She woke up in her bedroom, slowly remembering what had happened. Wincing and gasping in pain, she brought her hand up to her shoulder, feeling the sticky blood ooze between her fingers and the ragged cut that was there._

Polly sat in the furthest corner of her bed away from the door, staring at it. Looking back to her, Jeff went outside to warn the police of how jumpy and frightened she was. However, when they went back into her hospital room, she was nowhere to be seen.

"Brilliant, bloody brilliant" Jeff muttered, looking to the officers, "Sorry about this. Polly? Polly? Come on Polly, where are you?"

"Okay, she can't have gone too far. If we all split up and look for her, it'll be quicker" one of the officers replied, setting off down the corridor to look for her.

Meanwhile, Polly had found her way to the outdoor entrance of the E.D and was sat on the hard ground, ignoring the glances and occasional comments from staff and patients coming in and out of the hospital, choosing instead to focus her attention on an ambulance that was just arriving.

"Polly?" Dixie's voice made her look up "What are you doing out here? Come on darling, let's get you back inside, it's freezing out here" putting her arm around Polly's good shoulder, she started to lead her back inside.

"What's going on, eh? Why were you out there and not on the ward?" Polly made no attempt to answer her, or even to acknowledge that she had spoken, simply continuing to walk.

As they approached the door to her room, Dixie noticed that Polly gripped her hand tighter. Dixie opened the door, but she refused to go in, sitting on the floor instead, lowering her head and staring at the floor.

"Pol? Come on, love, let's go on in." Dixie tried to take hold of Polly's good hand but she flinched, pulling it away from her grasp. She sighed audibly, she should have known that Polly wouldn't give in quite that easily; if she got an idea in her head, it stuck.

Eventually, after about 15 minutes, she managed to get the distressed young girl inside and sat both of them down on the hospital bed whilst Polly clung to her, crying and refusing to let go.

"Right, what's wrong, Polly? You were alright earlier when I went out to get your things. What's upset you so much?" Again, she got no reply.

"Ahh, here she is! Dix, what you doing here mate?" Jeff called over to them, alerting the police that Polly was there.

"Actually, I was going to ask you a question as well, Jeff. Why was she sat outside the E.D entrance?"

"Police are here, they need to take a statement from her about the, you know, the erm…incident before. Anyway, they came in earlier to speak to her, she freaked, and next thing we know she's run off! Are you going to talk to them, Polly? Because you're sure not running off again…" he said, earning a glare from Dixie and a defiant shake of the head from Polly.

"Jeffrey!" Dixie hissed "You're not helping; you're just making her worse!"

"No police, no police, no police!" Polly suddenly shouted, making Jeff and Dixie look over to her, alarmed.

"Polly, they can help get this sorted out. But they can't help if you won't let them…" Dixie tried to reason with her, with no luck.

"They can't help! If I talk to them, tell them what happened, they'll come after me again. They'll kill me!" the technician said, breaking down in tears and reaching out to Dixie for a hug. "I-I'm scared. I don't want them near me, or you two, I wish they'd just disappear again! Pl-please, don't make me do this, it won't help, it'll only make things worse…for everyone"

Dixie hugged her back, holding her tightly and once more, running her hand through the girl's hair, in an attempt to calm her "It's alright, it's alright. Trust me, Pol, they're not coming anywhere near you! Right, Jeff?" she beckoned him over.

"She's right, Polly, they're not coming anywhere near you, not while we have anything to do with it! If you won't talk to the police, will you talk to us?" he paused for a moment, giving her chance to reply.

She appeared to consider this, biting her lip. After a few minutes, she looked up and nodded at him "I'll tell you two, but not them. You can't tell them anything either!"

"Okay, just us" Jeff gave her a small smile; at least it would be a start. Although, secretly, both were wondering if they really wanted to know.


	11. Chapter 11

Sensing the young girl's anxiety and reluctance to begin speaking, Dixie squeezed her hand tightly. The police were no longer stood outside; Jeff had had to tell them that they were wasting their time at the moment, as they went going to get much, if anything, out of her.

Polly looked up at them both "I'm not sure I want to remember what happened" she said quietly, but not quietly enough and Dixie and Jeff still heard her.

"It's alright, princess, it's just us, yeah? But, for us to be able to help you, you need to help us out and tell us what's going on"

Dixie held her closer to her; it was now becoming clear that this had been going on for a lot longer than anyone had previously thought "Just you start when you're ready, Pol, there's no rush."

Polly took a deep breath and began to speak again, Dixie and Jeff now giving her their full attention "I don't know how old I was when it started, I was probably too young. I remember being about 3 years old, and alone in the house for hours at a time. When my mum was there, she couldn't wait to get rid of me again; she was more interested in getting smashed on the drugs. I got in the way of that lifestyle, so she just let me get on with it"

She heard them gasp, shocked at what they had just heard. "When I went to school, they were always worried about me; I was never fed, dirty and covered in injuries. School was the only place, apart from my neighbour's house, that I was ever cared for or protected. My mum didn't give a damn, she didn't care how much she hurt me, how rubbish I felt, she never cared about me at all" Polly said all of this very quickly, hoping that it would be less painful that way. She wasn't really sure if it was working or not, she would much rather not have to think or speak about her past at all, but that wasn't an option.

"So, what happened? You were left to stay with that…that…woman and nobody did anything about it?" Jeff could feel his temper rising more and more as Polly spoke, but he was trying to hold it together.

*Flashback*

"_Polly, where are you darling?" Polly heard the voice of her teacher calling her, but didn't move from under the craft table._

"_Come on, Polly, where are you? It's okay, you're safe, I promise. Can you come out for me? I just want to talk to you, don't worry, you're not in any trouble" Polly obediently came out from underneath the table and moved towards her teacher, lowering her head and looking to the floor._

_It had been an eventful playtime, , her teacher, thought. They hadn't one that been quite so eventful for a while…_

_It had all started with a few of the older boys messing about in the playground, just play fighting with each other. When one of them got knocked over, Polly panicked, remembering things that had happened to her at home. _

"_Stop it, stop it!" she shouted at them, violently shaking "That's not nice, people get hurt when you hit them" she turned away from them and ran back up the playground steps to her classroom. Once she was inside, she had hid underneath the crafts table, where she wouldn't be seen._

_Now that she had come out, Miss Eastwood had to try and reassure her that she had done the right thing in moving from her hiding place. "It's alright, good girl. Good girl for coming out, Polly. You're not in any trouble. I just want to know why you ran off"_

_A tiny voice answered her "I was scared, it reminded me of things at home…"_

*End flashback*

Polly started to cry, tears now flowing freely down her face as memories came flooding back to her. She didn't want to remember anything else, but she had promised Dixie and Jeff that she would tell them.

"I was taken into care when I was eight years old, moved away from my mum and into a care home. It was nice there, there wasn't much shouting and nobody ever hit you. But, I was only there a month before I was moved back home again; they said it was only ever going to be a temporary arrangement. I wish they'd let me stay there"

She gulped, taking a deep breath before continuing "When I went home again, nothing had changed. Except she had another new boyfriend and he was worse than she was. As soon as I walked through the doorway, she started hitting me, saying I'd gotten her in trouble with the social. She just yelled at me for ages, saying how I'd got her into trouble, then sent me upstairs and locked me in my bedroom until I had to get up and go to school the next morning.

Things didn't change much after that, if it was a school day, I was locked in overnight. If it was a weekend or a holiday, I'd be locked in all of the time, apart from once a day to go to the toilet"

"And you never tried to escape?" Jeff asked, horrified at what she was describing to him. Dixie hadn't said a word since Polly had started talking, taking in what she was saying.

"No" she replied simply "If I tried to escape or I mis-behaved, then they tied me up as well. It wasn't worth playing up; I'd only have been making things worse for myself if I did. It wasn't exactly like they needed an excuse to make my life a living hell, Jeff.

I wish I could tell you that this didn't really happen to me, that I made it up. But then I'd be lying, because it did happen"

Polly paused momentarily, looking up from the floor to Dixie and Jeff and taking in the shocked expressions on their faces.

"Things didn't really get any better until I was fifteen. Everything got too much and I told a teacher everything. Things happened pretty quickly then, I was moved back into another care home and I stayed there until I was eighteen. I had a few encounters with my mum and Devin, they'd be waiting for me at the school gates sometimes, but staff kept them away mostly.

Then, out of the blue, she turns up again with him, wanting me to…I can't, I can't say it!"

Dixie spoke softly to her friend, seeing how upset and distraught she was becoming "What did they want you to do, love?"

"Th-they, they wanted me to have s-sex with people to get money for their drugs! I heard them, they wanted to keep me tied up so I couldn't escape, then men would pay to sleep with me. And there would've been nothing I could have done about it, nothing!" Polly started to cry again, her words coming as ragged sobs.

"Polly" Jeff spoke to her next, joining them on a chair next to the bed "We'll get through this, all of us, alright? There's no way they're getting anywhere near you! We're in this together"

"In this together" Dixie agreed "We'll look after you, kiddo, make sure you're safe"


	12. Chapter 12

"We've lost her. So what do we do now? I told you it was a stupid idea!" April growled.

"What, so we're just gonna give up are we? Just like that eh? I thought there was more to you than that, April! Maybe we need to pay her another visit, you know, just to be sure. Make sure she knows that we mean business here…"

Dixie woke up early that morning, 6:30am to be precise. She got up quietly, not wanting to wake up Jeff and Polly. For Polly, it was the first decent night's sleep she'd had since she was admitted.

She walked out of the ward, through the E.D until she reached the peace garden. Sitting down on the bench and taking in her surroundings, she let her thoughts wander. She kept remembering the day that they had been called out to the old storage building and they'd found her there. Poor girl was terrified, but she'd come a long way since that day.

Polly had started to open up to them now, but both Dixie and Jeff knew that they were only just scratching the surface. With every little thing she told them, there was plenty more things that she wasn't saying.

The main thing was that she was safe and she was with them, so they could look after her, she thought.

Looking at her watch, she suddenly realised how long she'd been out there. It was now 8am, and Polly would probably be awake and wondering where she was.

Polly woke up, manoeuvring herself in to a sitting position and rubbing her eyes. She looked over to Jeff, who was still sleeping. Where was Dixie?

Dixie walked into Polly's room, smiling when she saw that she was awake.

"Hiya sweetheart. You alright?" Polly nodded, returning the smile.

"Yeah, thanks, better than I was anyway" she laughed. At this, Dixie's eyes lit up; she hadn't heard her laugh for ages, and it was lovely to see her happy and getting back to her usual self again.

Jeff woke up, hearing the laughter and conversation. "Morning" he said sleepily, stretching. "Why you both looking at me like that? I wasn't asleep for that long, it's only half eight!"

"Stop waffling, Jeffrey. We're going for a walk. You coming?"

"Yeah, suppose so"

The three of them walked outside, onto the hospital grounds. After a while, Jeff could see that Polly was starting to struggle and linked his arm through hers to support her.

"Alright Pol?"

"Fine, thanks, just tired I guess"

"Yeah well it'll take a while, you know. You wanna head back inside?" Polly nodded, her arm was starting to hurt as well, the painkillers must be wearing off.

"Come on then" Dixie said cheerfully, heading towards the entrance.

"Jeff? Jeffrey! You coming or what?"

"Yeah, yeah, in a minute…don't we know them?" he muttered, unintentionally drawing Polly's attention to the two people walking towards them.

"I want to go back inside, Jeff, please" Polly begged him, tugging at his arm.

"Right, I'm getting security" Dixie said, sprinting inside.

"Excuse me, security!" she yelled, going over to the security guard "I think we might need you outside mate"

"What's going on?" he asked her, following her back outside.

Dixie pointed to April and Devin by way of explanation, then to Polly. "Those two. They abducted her last week; put her in hospital and now they're here again to cause trouble…"

Polly came running up to Dixie, taking hold of her hand and focusing on her so she didn't have to look at her mum and Devin.

Meanwhile, Devin had launched himself at Jeff, succeeding in punching him in the face and bursting his nose.

"Get off him, leave him alone!" Polly screamed, holding Dixie's hand tighter.

"Oi! Get off him, come on!" the guard yelled, trying to pull Devin away from Jeff.

"Right, come on, get out of here, you two! You're not to come back here, you hear me? Go on, go, I won't tell you again!"

Devin smirked, glaring daggers at the three of them "Alright, alright, we're going. See you"

"Jeff! You alright? I'm so sorry!" Polly said, she was shaking again.

"Yeah, I'll live. Not your fault, Pol, you weren't to know"

Walking into the E.D, Dixie ushered Tess over.

"What happened?"

"Some thug" lowering her voice, Dixie added "The same thug that abducted her last week. Just launched himself at Jeff"

Catching on quickly, Tess nodded. "No problem, let's get you cleaned up Jeff"

"Thanks, Tess. I need to get her back upstairs, try and calm her down"

Tess led Jeff off to see the extent of the damage, while Dixie walked with Polly back to the ward.

"Come on, love, he'll be alright" she comforted her, opening the door to her room. "Come and sit down, Polly" Polly nodded, moving to sit on the bed. "That's it, good girl. You're alright, they're gone, and security will make sure they don't come back again"

"I know, why did they have to go for Jeff though? It's me they want…"

Glad she was talking, Dixie replied "Who knows, eh? You don't need to worry, you're safe here Pol"

*Flashback*

"_Get off me!" Polly screeched, trying and failing to push Devin off her. "You shouldn't be here, you're not allowed within a mile of me"_

"_Yeah? Who needs poxy rules like that? You want to shut that mouth of yours, or you're gonna end up getting hurt. Badly hurt"_

_Later that night, Polly lay in a hospital bed, while the doctors and nurses tried to piece together the story of what had happened to their patient..._

*End flashback*

"Hi, you two. You alright?" Jeff greeted, as he walked in and sat down.

"We're fine" Dixie answered, giving Polly a reassuring smile "So, what's the damage?"

"Nothing to collateral, luckily" Jeff smiled slightly "I got off lightly, only a bit of blood. No breaks, nothing"

"Well, that's definitely good, Jeffrey" she looked again to Polly who had now fallen asleep "Bloody nutter, that bloke. We need to get the police involved, Jeff, because they are not going to give up that easily"

"Yeah, true, she's had enough trouble ain't she?" he too glanced at the sleeping young girl before turning back to Dixie "It's just getting her to agree to speak to them"


	13. Chapter 13

It was the day of Polly's discharge from hospital, and she couldn't wait.

"Alright, Pol? Ready to go love?" Dixie's voice got her attention and she looked up, nodding.

"Yeah, think I've got everything…"

"Except your phone perhaps! And I've got your prescription, so let's go…"

"I knew I'd forgotten something…thanks Dix"

As they pulled up outside Jeff and Dixie's house, Polly looked around anxiously at the row of parked vehicles, checking to see if any of them were black vans.

Luckily, there were no black vans in sight, but Polly still kept looking over her shoulder to check; this was where Devin had abducted her only a week and a half ago…

"C'mon, princess, shall we go in? I'm gasping for a cuppa!" Jeff asked her, gently steering her away from the busy street and towards the house.

She looked at him, biting her lip, and his facial expression softened.

"I know, I know. But you're alright, ain't you? Come on, Polly, we'll make sure that you're safe here"

"Do you two want tea?" Dixie called to them as they came into the hallway.

"Please" they replied in unison, making each other giggle whilst Dixie shook her head at the pair of them. She was just glad to see Polly smiling and laughing again. If Polly was happy, then she was too.

Polly sat down on the sofa, leaning her head on Jeff's chest and cuddling up to him, making him grin before starting to tickle her. She squealed and sat up, trying to scowl at him but instead collapsed into giggles again as Jeff pulled a hurt expression at her and stuck out his lip.

Dixie came in with the tea, handing one to each of them, and starting to join in the laughter herself as she glanced at Jeff, he really could act very much like a child when he wanted to.

Polly looked around at her two friends, smiling at them both and drinking her tea. She was glad that things were starting to get back to normal. Deep down, she knew she would have to speak to the police eventually; they couldn't carry on like this. She also knew that the only thing that was stopping her from going to the police and telling them everything was fear of what might happen to her, or to Dixie and Jeff, if she did.

*Flashback*

_Polly, aged 5 years old, sat in the far corner of her bedroom, praying that the bedroom door wouldn't open. She had already suffered one horrific beating earlier that evening and she didn't think that she could handle another one._

_Earlier that day at school…_

"_Morning Polly!" Miss Eastwood greeted her, taking her inside. _

"_Right, we've got P.E first so do you want to get changed now?" Polly nodded, taking off her cardigan and starting to unbutton her dress. _

"_Good girl" she said, before noticing the fresh bruises and cuts on the girl's back "They look nasty, how did you get those Polly?"_

"_Mummy" she replied simply, not looking up._

_Mummy had been very angry with Polly for telling her teacher…she had hit her over and over, ignoring her cries and pleas to stop. _

_Now, she sat in the corner of her bedroom, clutching her side where her mother had hit her…_

*End flashback*

Taking a deep breath, she again looked over to Jeff and Dixie, half smiling at them whilst knowing what she had to say.

"Jeff, Dixie?"

They looked up, and both made eye contact with her, wondering what she had to say.

"I need to do something, something important that I should have done ages ago. I need to speak to the police about what happened"

"Hang on, Pol, two days you point blank refused to even be in the same room as them! What's bought this on?" Jeff replied, trying to get his head around what she had just said. He certainly hadn't been expecting that, and he was fairly sure that Dixie hadn't been expecting to hear that either.

"Yesterday. I can't go on like this, guys. Terrified every time the phone rings or someone knocks at the door, and it's not fair on you two, either. I know I must have been a nightmare this last week, and I'm sorry; I just needed time to get my head around things, I still do"

"You sure princess? Nobody's going to force you into it, you know. And you don't need to apologise, anyone else would have reacted that way"

"I'm sure. I need to do this, get it sorted"


	14. Chapter 14

The next morning…

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

'I'll get it" Jeff said, getting to his feet, and going to answer the police.

"Hello there, is it possible to speak with a Miss Polly Emmerson please?"

"No problem, she's just through here. Polly!"

"Thank you. Hello Polly, I'm Inspector Fielding, I'll be looking after your case, alright?" he didn't get a verbal response from the technician, but she nodded, moving closer to Dixie and looking to her for re-assurance that she was doing the right thing.

"It's alright, Pol. He wants to help you, we all do!" Dixie responded, attempting to soothe her by rubbing small circles on her back.

"So, Polly, I need to ask you a few questions about what happened 2 weeks ago" Polly audibly whimpered, feeling like she was going to be sick. Seeing her visibly pale, Dixie helped her to her feet and led her to the bathroom.

"Sorry, sir, can you excuse us for a moment please?" Dixie asked, waiting until the officer nodded before walking off with Polly.

"Okay, love, it's alright, it's alright" she told her, looking her in the eyes and smiling.

"I'm going to be sick…" Polly muttered, retching. Dixie took hold of her hand and quickly led her into the bathroom where she was sick then promptly burst into tears, sobbing loudly.

Dixie moved her hair out of her face as she was sick again, before replying "It's okay, Polly, they're here to help you. Shall we head back out, get you a drink of water?"

Polly again nodded, starting to walk back down the hallway and into the living room where Jeff and the inspector were waiting for them to return.

"Alright princess?" Jeff asked her "Good girl, come and sit down, that's it, it's alright" Polly obediently moved to sit down next to Jeff.

"She's been sick" Dixie muttered, going to get her some water from the kitchen.

"You feeling better now?"

"A bit" she responded "My head hurts, I feel dizzy"

"You'll feel better after a drink of water" Jeff assured her, taking the cup from Dixie and handing it to Polly.

The inspector looked at Polly "Okay, Polly, do you think you can tell me what happened that day you were taken? Take all the time you need…"

"I, I don't really remember much…I was waiting outside the house for Dixie and Jeff when I saw this black van. I knew it was Devin's, but I never saw him come up behind me until it was too late. I screamed, then he put something over my face and I fell unconscious"

The inspector was still writing all this down in his notebook as he began to ask the next question "Good, can you tell me what happened next?"

*Flashback*

_The effects of the drug began to wear off as Polly slowly started to gain consciousness again. _

_She blinked rapidly several times but couldn't see anything because of the dark blindfold covering her eyes._

"_Mmpph!" she began to panic as she suddenly remembered what had happened. She coughed a few times before realising that where a large piece of cloth wedged into her mouth which was secured another strip of cloth tied around her head, preventing her from screaming out._

"_She's awake!" Polly heard her mother shout; she hadn't heard that voice in a while, although that wasn't necessarily a bad thing._

"_Right, finish tying her up, then we can get going" Devin yelled back to her._

_April, Polly's mother, walked over to her, producing bundles of rope from her pocket and dropping them on the floor. She secured the girl's arms further by tying her elbows and upper arms, bound her ankles and knees before rolling her onto her stomach. _

_She used another rope that connected the ropes on her wrists and ankles, then attached a piece of rope to the cloth gag and secured it to the others, pulling her head back to further restrict her movement._

_After Polly had cried out in pain, April smiled and said: _

"_You can struggle, sweetheart, but you're not going anywhere for a while. At least not until we decide to move you"_

_Finally, she pulled out a long strip of thick cloth and some cotton wool balls._

"_Now you can enjoy your time with us in the silence and the darkness" she laughed evilly. "We've got to go out, but don't worry, we'll be back later"_

_By stuffing the cotton wool balls into Polly's ears and wrapping the cloth around her head tightly to keep them in place, she succeeded in cutting off the young girl's hearing. _

_Now the sharpest bits of sensory information that Polly had were; the cold, hard floor she was lying on, the slight odour of the room, the taste of the gag in her mouth and the pain in her limbs from the ropes._

*End flashback*

Polly told the inspector all of this, then started to tell him what had happened next;

"They came back again, my mum gave me a drink of water then she gagged me again and walked away. Nothing happened for ages, so I guess that was night time…then someone kicked me, hard, in my side. They started hitting me, over and over, they wouldn't stop! I don't remember anything for a while after that, the next thing I knew, the police were there…"

"Right, thank you, Polly. I know that it can't have been easy for you to tell me all of that, and so calmly as well. Now we need to find a way to catch these two, can I just ask you to confirm their names for me please?"

"Devin Rickshaw and April Emmerson" Polly said quietly, shuddering as she said her mother's name.

"Thank you" the inspector replied, writing the new information down "so, what I propose we do is to arrange a meeting with April and Devin to catch them in the act, if you like. We need to create a situation where they don't know that the police are involved, so that we can catch them more easily"

"Okay" Polly said, clearly a little sceptical.

"Well, thank you for your time, I'll be in touch later today"


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N thank you for all your lovely reviews so far **** hope you like the next chapter. Enjoy and please read and review! Xx**

It was the day of the arranged meeting with April and Devin. They had agreed to meet her outside an old run-down café, provided that it was only her there. Polly had agreed, telling Dixie and Jeff where she would be meeting them but making sure that they stayed well away from the area, telling them that she would contact them if there was a problem.

"Well, Polly, we meet again!" Devin snarled at her "Changed your mind, have you? Gonna help us out after all?"

"No!" she replied sternly "This all needs to stop, I can't help you, sorry"

"Well then, well then, looks you'll be spending some time with us again!" tearing off the sling that was supporting her arm and grabbing both her hands behind her back, Polly panicked. Where were the police? They should have been there ages ago, they'd probably been diverted to another high profile 999 call…

"No, no, get off me, get off me!" she screamed, only to feel ropes being tied around her wrists and elbows, securing them behind her back.

"And why would we do that, eh? That would spoil all our fun!" April added, helping Devin to secure the frightened young girl's wrists onto a drainpipe on the floor, then tying each of her ankles to the gateposts, forcing her into a humiliating and very uncomfortable position on the ground.

"No, no, please, get off me, let me go-" she started to plead with them, but she was cut off as a large piece of thick cloth was stuffed into her mouth, making her cough. Tape was layered over the top, keeping it in place.

Polly could only hope that the police would be here soon, she wished that she hadn't asked Dixie and Jeff to wait so far away from where she was, she didn't know what was going to happen to her, but she could make a fairly good guess at it.

Her guess was right, within minutes Devin had forced himself onto her, while April looked on, smiling. There was still no sign of the police, where were they?

Suddenly, her ankles were untied then roughly roped together so that she couldn't run off, the rope attaching her wrists to the drainpipe was removed, and a drug laced cloth was placed over her mouth and nose, knocking her unconscious again.

Quickly scribbling a note, they fled the area.

The note read:

_Dear police, _

_We are not that stupid, we knew that you would be involved! We have Polly, please come to this address to find out where she is…_

They had already left a series of notes in rundown old buildings, some near and some further away. When they found the last one, it would lead them to Polly, but they intended to be well away by then.

Finally arriving at the destination, they carried Polly inside and laid her on the floor, quickly tying her wrists to her ankles, so she wouldn't go anywhere.

Meanwhile, the police had arrived at the agreed location, sighing when they saw the note; these two were clearly cleverer than they had first thought. The officer pulled out his phone, dialling Jeff's number.

"Hello? Jeff Collier speaking…"

"Hi, Jeff, Inspector Fielding here…we have a problem. They've taken her, there's a note with an address so if you can get to the agreed metting place we can start the search"

"Okay, thanks mate, bye"

"Jeff, what's happening? Can we go and pick her up yet?"

"Not yet, Dixie. Listen, there's been a slight problem…they've taken her…police found a note in the alleyway with an address on, so we have got to go and meet them there"

"What?! No, no Jeff, this can't be happening, not again!"

"Look, c'mon, the sooner we get to this place the better chance we have of finding her…"

Polly began to regain consciousness again, opening her eyes slowly then closing them again, squinting at the harsh lighting…at least this time she could see where she was…

"Mmpph, ow ow ow!" she grunted, trying to move but instantly regretted it when she realised the position she was tied into. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Devin walking towards her, bundles of rope in his hand, she knew what was coming.

Like before, he tied the end of the rope around the cloth holding the gag in place and yanked her head back, then attached it to the mass of knots, forcing her to keep her head back, causing her great pain.

She whimpered, only to receive a sharp kick in the ribs, followed by another, then another. Eventually, he gave up and walked away, leaving her to wonder how she had gotten into this again.

They had arrived at the address, and all were looking round for any clues that might help them to find Polly.

Dixie spotted a note on the table and called everyone over to see it. There was no clue, just another address written in the exact same scruffy handwriting…

Polly lay on the floor in the abandoned old storage building, wondering what they were going to do to her. Whatever it was, she knew it wouldn't be pleasant. She prayed that they had left something behind at the scene that would help them to find her.

She was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of Devin's voice, and another male voice that she didn't recognise

"Yeah, she's just here mate. You, behave yourself! She's all yours, but that's 50 quid upfront please. Thanks, enjoy!"

Polly could feel herself shaking as the man approached, sitting down beside her and immediately started to touch her up. He slapped her across the face before removing his trousers and forcing himself into Polly, grinning evilly at her when she had cried out in pain.

Tears filled the young technician's eyes as she tried to block out what was happening to her. How long were they going to keep her there for, how many men were going to pay to sleep with her?


	16. Chapter 16

Dixie and Jeff were following behind the police in their ambulance, to the next address. Dixie was becoming more and more distressed with every new location that they went to and every new address they had to go to, this was the fifth one so far, and it had taken them a week up to this point. Jeff hated it as much as she did and he desperately wanted to find Polly, but he had to keep it together for Dixie…

Polly had no idea how much time had passed, several more men had come and gone, each sleeping with her, thank goodness she had had that contraceptive injection not long ago…

Several hard whacks with a baseball bat bought her to her senses once more, and she yelped in agony, all the while knowing that it wouldn't stop there. She knew from past experiences that was only the very beginning of it.

April continued to hit her, ignoring her muffled pleas and cries to stop, beating down hard on her already injured arm and left leg, hip and pelvis until she heard the sound she had been waiting for, the sound of bones breaking.

Not yet satisfied that she was in enough pain, April beckoned Devin over…

Finally, Dixie and Jeff pulled into the car park of what looked like an abandoned storage place, and the place that they had been told Polly was at. They had come in the ambulance, and were ready for whenever the police gave them the go ahead.

The officer spoke up "Right, we think she is being held here. We don't know for certain, but the black van that Miss Emmerson described to us last week is parked here…let us go in first and get them away from her before you go in, okay?"

Everyone nodded in agreement; Dixie and Jeff just wanted to find her now, it had been over a week since she had been taken and they were really worried about her, knowing that she would be in a bad way.

Half an hour later…

The police came out, April and Devin being led out in handcuffs, cursing and blinding everyone under the sun. Dixie and Jeff both let out long breaths that they had no idea that they'd been holding, they were away from her now at least…

Jeff followed Dixie in with the kit and trolley "Polly? Polly where are you?"

Their reply was an ear piercing scream from the technician who just wanted to get out of there, and the sooner the better.

Dixie ran over to her, kneeling down beside her friend and gently stroked her hair while she waited for Jeff.

"There you are! Let's get you out of these ropes, eh sweetheart?" she commented, now grabbing the bag and giving her some morphine to help her with the pain.

The building gave both of them the creeps, so it didn't take them long to get the young, frightened girl strapped onto the spinal board and into the back of the ambulance.

Jeff knew it would be dangerous for Dixie to drive in the state she was in, so he climbed into the driver's seat and started the engine.

Dixie wasted no time in giving Polly more pain relief to make her as comfortable as possible, then resumed stroking her hair and talking softly to her, wiping away her tears with a tissue from her pocket.

She sighed heavily, Polly had been in a real mess when they had eventually gotten to her, her arm had been re-broken in all the same places, her left hip was dislocated and fractured, her left leg was badly broken, and her pelvis was badly bruised, as well as a nasty wound to the top of her head.

"Good girl, Polly, you're doing really well, sweetheart. We're not too far away now. At least those two won't be anywhere near you again now; they'll be locked up in prison where they belong!"

Polly made no verbal response, just looked at Dixie, who knew exactly what she meant; she just wanted some comfort, to be told that they would look after her and that things were going to be alright.

"That's it, good girl, just try and relax for me darling, it's alright. You're safe here, I promise"

Polly's head was spinning, this past week had been an absolute nightmare for her. Now that her mother and Devin would be locked up, she knew that she would be safe, but that wasn't going to make her recovery any easier. Nor would it make the memories and flashbacks that she kept having constantly any easier to deal with, she knew it would take a long, long time to get over this, and she was grateful that Dixie and Jeff would be there to help and support her every step of the way.


	17. Chapter 17

"Come on! What you playing at?" Jeff yelled as a car pulled out in front of him, narrowly escaping hitting the ambulance "bloody idiot"

The sudden shouting made Polly jump and then look over to Dixie for re-assurance "Alright, Polly, it's alright darling. We're nearly there now" she replied, smiling at her and squeezing her hand.

"Sorry guys, right we're here!" Jeff said, parking the ambulance outside the E.D then going to help Dixie.

There was a team of doctors and nurses waiting on standby for Polly to come in; Jeff had radioed in and pre-warned them of her condition.

Zoe rushed over to them "Hi guys, what've we got then?"

"Okay, Polly Emmerson, 23 years old. Series of serious breaks to the whole of the left leg, dislocation and fractures to the left hip, multiple breaks to the whole of the right arm and possible fracturing to the pelvis. Ohh and nasty wound to the top of her head, she's had 20 of morphine…" Jeff told her as she directed them into resus.

1 hour later…

They had managed to stabilise her condition, and now they were waiting for the results of the C.T scan. They had had to sedate her, as she had been becoming very distressed as a result of the pain. Polly was conscious, but under heavy sedation she wasn't really aware of what was happening around her.

Zoe ushered them out of resus to discuss her treatment. "Okay, looking at the scans, she's been very lucky; there's no significant head injury or back injury. However, I would like to put a temporary back brace on to support her back; her back's been under a lot of pressure whilst she's been tied up like that for so long.

X-rays are back, multiple breaks to the whole of her right shoulder and arm, and multiple breaks to the whole of her left leg, there is a dislocation and fracture to the hip. Plus, her pelvis is unfortunately fractured as well, quite badly in 3 places"

Dixie took a deep breath, taking all the information in as well as wondering how she was going to tell Polly all of this "Right, so what happens now then?"

"Well, she will definitely need to have surgery on all of the breaks as they will all need to be supported with either metal plates or pins in order for them to heal correctly. So now, we just have to wait and keep her comfortable until surgery are ready for her. Also, we have taken her off of the sedation now that we can manage her pain more effectively"

"Okay, thanks, Zoe" Dixie said, heading back into resus with Jeff to see her friend.

On hearing the doors open and people coming back into the room, Polly opened her eyes.

"Heya, how are you doing princess?" Jeff asked her, moving to sit where she could see him. Polly made no attempt to respond verbally; instead she looked at him and reached out her good hand, simply wanting some positive attention.

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Dr. Hanna came in back in "Hiya, Polly. Right then, we've had the results of the scans, you've been quite lucky; there's no significant head or back injury. However, I would like to put a temporary back brace on to support your back; as it has been under a lot of pressure this last week.

X-rays are back, multiple breaks to the whole of the right shoulder and arm, and multiple breaks to the whole of the left leg, there is a dislocation and fracture to the hip. Plus, your pelvis is unfortunately fractured as well, quite badly in 3 places"

"Well, you will definitely need to have surgery on all of the breaks as they will all need to be supported with either metal plates or pins in order for them to heal correctly. So now, we just have to wait and keep you comfortable until surgery are ready for you to go up" with that, she left again, leaving Jeff and Dixie to have some time with Polly.

Polly again was silent, just looking at her friends for support and re-assurance while she took everything in; it sounded like it would be quite a long recovery process and that she was going to need a lot of help.

"Well, at least now we know what's happening, eh?" Dixie said, attempting to make conversation and break the silence and tension in the room, but also not wanting to tip the young girl over the edge; she knew that it wouldn't take much at the moment "you alright Pol?"

Finally, she spoke up, although her voice was shaky and barely audible "Tired" she said, yawning and trying to keep her eyes open; she was exhausted, she hadn't slept much in the past week, the only rest she got was when she was unconscious.

"Go to sleep then, we're not going anywhere princess" Jeff added in, leaning over and stroking her hair, hoping to encourage her to sleep.

It worked; after a few minutes Polly had fallen asleep.

*Flashback*

_Polly, aged 5 years old, was still at school in her reception classroom. It was 4:30 pm; an hour after home time but nobody had come to pick her up. The school had tried to ring both her mother and her neighbour, but both were out._

_Miss Eastwood sighed, trying to think of something to occupy the girl while they tried to contact someone. _

"_Right, Polly, what are we going to do with you then? Jigsaw? Computer? Dressing up? Drawing? Book?" Polly shook her head, but nodded at the last option, going to the book corner and picking out a story. She then took the book over to her teacher, sitting down next her and waiting for her to start reading._

_Miss Eastwood smiled at her; whenever they had choosing time, Polly often just wanted to be read a story and have a cuddle, one of the many thing she was missing out on in her home environment…_

*End flashback*

Polly awoke suddenly, crying out as the pain relief wore off.

Tess heard her and came over, giving her some more "Alright, Polly, I'm just going to give you some more pain relief, good girl"

Soon after, theatre rang to say that they were ready for her and Mac came to take her up.

Dixie and Jeff waved her off, and then went to get a coffee.

"Poor thing. She's really going through it at the moment, ain't she?" Dixie said, taking a sip of coffee.

"Yeah, I know. Still, at least now those two are locked up in prison where they belong, so they can't cause any more problems"

"Well, that's one good thing. We'll look after her, Jeff. We'll get through this, all of us, we're all in this together" she smiled.


	18. Chapter 18

On the ward, Polly was starting to come round from the anaesthetic, every so often opening her eyes and then closing them again.

Both Dixie and Jeff were pleased to see her starting to wake up, but also knowing that they were only at the very beginning of a long road to recovery for her. She was also going to need a lot of support, emotionally as physically.

After a few minutes, Polly opened her eyes and looked around the room, screwing her face up in pain as she did so. A nurse came over, topping up her pain relief and giving her a warm smile.

"Hey princess, how are you feeling?" Jeff smiled at her.

"Tired, in pain, I just want to sleep…" she answered him.

"Then go to sleep, we ain't going anywhere, are we Dix?"

Before anyone could say anything else, 2 doctors came into the room.

"Hello, Polly. How are you feeling?" not giving chance to reply, he continued "now, we are here to put that back brace on you. I will warn you, it may not be particularly comfortable for a while…"

With that, they set to work putting the back brace on and securing the straps "Alright, how's that?"

"It's fine" Polly said, not wanting to make a fuss. But, when the doctors had left the room, she burst into tears, biting down hard on her lip "Oww! It hurts" she whimpered.

"It's alright, Polly, it'll get better darling" Dixie attempted to soothe her, hating the fact that she couldn't physically hug her; they were on strict instructions not to move her unless there was a nurse or a doctor present.

Polly just looked at her; Dixie could see how tired and rundown she looked. "Why don't you get some sleep, eh?"

Polly nodded, the pain relief had started to take effect now and it was taking the edge off the pain. Sighing, she closed her eyes; right at that moment, sleep couldn't come soon enough for her.

*Flashback*

_Polly was sat outside in the garden. It was 11:15pm at night and a freezing minus 13 degrees. She didn't know where her mother was, her neighbours were out and Polly didn't know when her mother would be back. She'd gone out hours ago, leaving her daughter outside in the freezing blizzards while she had gone to meet her boyfriend._

_Polly looked up instinctively when she heard a car drive down the road. A woman, her neighbour got out and started to walk towards her._

"_Polly?" she called over to the tiny girl "What are you doing out here sweetheart? Where's mummy?"_

"_Out" she whispered, clutching at her stomach; she was starving, she hadn't had anything to eat all day again._

_Her neighbour, Judith, sighed "Have you had anything to eat?" her guess was confirmed when Polly shook her head "Come on then, you must be freezing out here. Let's get you warmed up, eh kiddo?" obediently, she got up and followed her into her house._

"_Hiya love, hi Polly" Marcus, Judith's husband, greeted them, shooting his wife a knowing look._

"_Hiya love, could you run a bath and find some Polly some dry clothes while I give her something to eat?" ushering Polly into the kitchen to see the dog, a spaniel called Toffee, she added "I'm sorry, but I couldn't leave her outside. It's minus 13 degrees, it's freezing out there. She was just sat on the doorstep, mum's gone out ages ago, we don't know when she'll be back and Polly hasn't had anything to eat all day" _

"_It's okay, I understand. I know how it is, with her mother…"_

*End flashback*

Polly awoke with a start, trying to move herself into a more comfortable position but not quite managing it. Although she knew the back brace was there to support her and make things better in the long term, it didn't make it any easier right at that moment.

"Dixie?" she whispered, seeing that Jeff had fallen asleep.

"Ohh, sorry love, I didn't realise you were awake. You alright sweetheart?"

"Yeah, I'm alright, bored though!"

"I know, love, I know. We can't really do much though until the results of your blood tests come back and we make sure one of those twats didn't give you some horrible infection or anything like that"

Zoe came into the room, walking over to Polly and smiling at her gently.

"Right, I have the results of your blood tests, Polly"

"Okay"

"Well, let's just say they weren't quite what we expecting…"

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that well…erm, there isn't really a less shocking way of putting this…you're pregnant Polly, 2 weeks gone"

Polly was stunned into silence by this news for a moment before replying "You're right, I wasn't expecting to hear that. But I haven't developed an STI or anything like that?"

"No, no, they all came back clear, thank goodness. There is something else I must warn you about if you do decide to keep the baby; because of the high levels of drugs that you were given, the baby will have a high chance of developing GDDS (Global Developmental Delay Syndrome), general learning difficulties, physical difficulties, sight/hearing impairments, health problems or a mixture of all of the above. I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you all this, Polly"

"It's okay"

"Right well I'll leave you in peace for a bit, but I will come and see you soon. Some of the others want to come up and see you; would that be alright with you?" Polly nodded and Zoe smiled "Alright, I'll see you later then" she said, exiting the room.

Dixie was as stunned by this news as Polly was; it wasn't exactly what she had been expecting to hear. Polly hadn't since a word since Zoe had left; she just stared silently at the ceiling, occasionally glancing at Dixie and Jeff, who had woken up in time to hear most of the conversation between Zoe and Polly.

"I don't know what to do" the technician muttered, her eyes filling up with tears. Thinking aloud, she added "What if I turn out to be the same sort of mother that mine was?"

"Ohh Pol, don't be daft, princess. You're nothing like your mother, and you never will be. We can't tell you what decision to make, but we can promise that we will both be here for every step of the way, whatever you decide"

Jeff put his hand on top of Polly's good one, and then Dixie put hers on top. Nobody knew how this was going to pan out and none of them expected it to be an easy journey. However, the silent gestures of making a tower of hands said a lot; they were all in this together, whatever obstacles they faced, they would face them together.


	19. Chapter 19

3AM. Polly was still awake, she hadn't been able to get to sleep for more than 10 minutes at a time all night. Dixie had stayed awake with her to make sure that she was alright.

Seeing she was awake again, Dixie moved closer to her, starting to stroke her hair, in an attempt to keep her as calm as possible; she could see how tired she was already but she couldn't get her to go to sleep.

Polly screwed her eyes tightly shut, desperate to get some sleep, she was exhausted, but no matter how hard she tried, sleep just would not come.

"Dixie?" she whispered.

"You alright Pol?"

"I'm just so tired, why can't I sleep?"

"I don't know, love. Just shut your eyes, least that way your body is getting some rest, even if you're not sleeping"

Polly did as she was told, closing her eyes and trying to relax. At the moment, it wasn't working, flashbacks kept coming to her.

*Flashback*

_Polly, aged 18 months, was alone in the house. She didn't know where her mummy was, or when she would be back; she had just gone out and left a beaker of juice on the living room table for Polly to have when she got thirsty._

"_Mummy?" the toddler called out, wanting her mother back. "Mummy, come back!"_

_She picked up the beaker of juice, sat on the sofa and began to drink it thirstily. Once she had finished it, she placed the empty beaker back on to the table and sank back into the sofa, hugging her knees and starting to cry; she was tired and wanted a cuddle; mummy had been gone for ages now, she was hungry, tired and fed up._

_Polly went to the back door, opening it as it hadn't been locked and went into the garden. She walked to the gate and looked around for her mother, tears now streaming down her face. _

"_Mummy?" she cried out again, whilst still looking around for her mother, who was nowhere in sight "I want my mummy!"_

_Soon after, her neighbour, Judith, walked past. Seeing Polly stood at the gate, she went over to her, immediately lifting her up and sitting down on the pavement with her, rocking her back and forth in her arms, hoping to get her to sleep. Within moments, Polly had fallen asleep, resting her head on her shoulder. _

_Sighing, Judith stood up again, with Polly still in her arms, and walked with her back through the garden and back into the house. She got a couple of nappies, some clean clothes and made some bottles of formula milk that she could heat up later for her at her house, as it looked like Polly would be with them for the night again._

_She was getting quite used to looking after Polly, even if it wasn't a formal arrangement…well, who else was going to do it? _

*End flashback*

Finally, at 4:45AM, Polly was asleep, and had been for the last half an hour, so Dixie had been able to get some sleep as well.

It didn't last terribly long, though. At 6:30AM, she had woken up again. Thoughts were racing through her mind, the main one being that she was pregnant; she hadn't been expecting to hear that! Now, she wasn't sure what to do, whether to keep it or not. Zoe had told her that if she did keep it, it was very likely to have additional needs of some sort.

She wanted to keep the baby, but there was something that kept niggling at the back of her mind, telling her that she would be like her own mother. What if she kept the baby, but treated it the same way as her own mother had treated her as a child? She didn't want that, and she really hoped that Jeff had been right in telling her that she was nothing like her mother.

After a while, she fell asleep again. When Dixie and Jeff woke up later that morning, Polly was still sound asleep.

"Come on, let's leave her to get some sleep Jeff" Dixie said, quietly ushering him out of the room and into the nearby café.

"Yep, okay I'm coming" he said, stretching and yawning, trying to wake himself up.

"Poor kid. She's got a lot of stuff going on at the moment, hasn't she?"

"She sure has, she is going to need a lot of help to get through it all Dix"

"Yeah, but we'll help her out and be there for her every step of the way. The pregnancy will certainly help to complicate things, though…"

"It sure will! I wonder what she'll do, I mean whether she'll decide to keep it or not. As well as the responsibility, the baby will be a product of rape; she'd be re-living it every time she looked at the baby for a while"

"Yeah, I know, but that's up to her to decide, we can't decide that for her. Whatever she does decide to do, we'll support her through it"

An hour later…

Dixie and Jeff were back in Polly's room, and she had just woken up.

"Jeff, Dixie?"

"Yeah?"

"I know what I want to do. About the baby, I mean…I want to keep it"

Jeff spoke first "You sure about this princess? It's a big thing, don't feel as if you're being pressurised into it"

"I don't feel like I'm being pressurised into it, honestly, I don't. I want to keep the baby; even if it will have some problems, I'll look after it…I'm not going to be the same sort of mother that mine was"

"Polly, babe, we knew that from the very beginning. You're nothing like her! You'll be a great mum"

"Yeah, you will" Dixie added in, smiling at her "The best mum ever!"

Polly laughed, bringing a smile to their faces "I don't know about that, but I'll certainly try my best to be a good mum to this baby"


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N okay, I have changed the format for this chapter from third person into first person from Polly's point of view to hopefully portray her feelings better! Please read and review **** xx**

I wake up in the room I am currently occupying on the ward, looking around. I can see Jeff and Dixie on the far side of the room; however once they see that I am awake they come over to me.

"Sorry, Polly, didn't realise you were awake! How you feeling princess?"

"Better" I reply, smiling at them both "Better than I have been anyway!"

"Yeah, suppose it helps now that you don't have to wear that back brace, eh?"

"Yes! God that was uncomfortable…" I mutter the last bit under my breath.

Dixie adds in "Well, you don't have to wear it anywhere more. You just need to concentrate on getting better now, kid"

"She's right, getting you better is our top priority, Pol" Jeff says, agreeing with her "Right, we'd better go and get you that stuff from your house or we'll forget! See you later"

Once they are gone, I have some time alone to think about everything that has happened in these past few weeks and attempt to process it without breaking down in tears.

I knew from the first day, when the packet of powder arrived, that I was in trouble. More trouble than I knew, at that point. I should have seen it coming after that, what was going to happen, I mean…especially with Devin involved too. He's worse than my mum is, and that takes some doing.

Quite frankly, being taken into care when I was fifteen was the best thing that could have happened to me. I only wish that I had been moved into care sooner, that more people had made more of an effort to realise what was happening to me at home, and that I could have been moved away from my mother when I was a lot younger. She wouldn't have minded, in fact she probably would have loved it, she never could stand having me around, she told me that, and on more than one occasion. Actually, she probably told me that on a daily basis, that and that it was my fault that she treated me the way that she did; I was always too noisy, too whingy, too boisterous, I ate/drank too much, made too much of a mess with everything, the list is endless.

*Flashback*

_Polly, aged 2 years old, was sat up in her cot, waiting to be taken out._

_After waiting for a while, she started to cry, hoping to get her mother's attention. It worked; April came upstairs and into her daughter's bedroom._

"_What?" she snapped "Well, what do you want, Polly? I'm busy!"_

_Polly remained silent, for a child of two, she didn't have much speech at all, and it was becoming increasingly clear that her speech was delayed due to lack of stimulation and conversation in her home environment._

_Lifting her out of the cot, her mother spoke again "What is it, Polly? What do you want? I can't do anything if you won't talk to me! How did I end up getting stuck with you, eh? All you do is cry, you don't talk, and you make a mess. All my mates with kids, they get on with them, have a laugh with them. What's wrong with you, you're never happy, are you?" with that, she put her daughter down and stormed back down the stairs, to get her next fix._

_Polly sat silently on the floor where her mother had put her, then curled into a ball, clutching a soft bear close to her and chewing its fur. She was hungry, but due to her lack of speech she hadn't been able to communicate that to her mother…_

*End flashback*

Everything was always my fault; no matter how quiet, tidy or well behaved I was, she never noticed, and I would still be punished for things that I hadn't done.

I want to keep this baby, I really do, but I can't help worrying that I will be the same sort of mum was. Never there, violent and always shouting. I can't remember one single thing that she said to me that was positive.

What if I'm like that when the baby comes? I don't want to be that sort of mum…am I doing the right thing in keeping the baby? I don't want to put it at risk in any way, maybe I should get rid of it?

When Dixie and Jeff come back, I am in tears. I don't know what think, I don't know what to do. My head is a real mess; with thoughts, flashbacks and questions all spinning around at once.

"Polly?" Dixie comes rushing over to me, pulling me into a hug "Polly, what's wrong? What's happened, are you in pain?"

I shake my head, looking away from her and down at the floor.

She persists, and starts speaking to me again "Polly? Polly, look at me, good girl, look at me. What's going on, eh? What's got you so upset?"

Knowing that she won't give up, I reply "I don't know what to do!"

"Don't know what to do about what?"

"The baby" I mutter, lowering my voice and looking at the floor again, focusing on a single stain on the otherwise pristine carpet.

"I thought you knew what you wanted to do? You said you wanted to keep it. Pol, have you changed your mind?"

"No. I still want to keep it, this baby deserves a chance, but not with me…"

"Polly, you ain't making any sense, princess. What are you getting at?" Jeff adds in.

I take a deep breath, swallowing hard "I don't think the baby should live with me after it's born"

Dixie responds first "Hey, hey, what's brought this on? Why don't you want the baby to live with you?"

"I'd be a rubbish mum! It wouldn't be fair, not when I won't be able to look after it properly. What if…what if I'm like my mum? I don't know if I am or not, but I don't want to take that chance"

"Polly, you're nothing like her! Nothing at all like her. You're sweet, kind, caring; you'd be a brilliant mum. Is this what you've been worrying about, why you've been so quiet all morning?"

"Yeah. I just want this baby to have the best possible chance, you know?"

"We understand that, love. But the best possible chance would be with you, Polly, with its mum!"

"She's right, Pol. The best place for the baby would be at home, with its mummy. You're not like her, babe, I can promise you that" Jeff says, smiling at me and taking my good hand in his.

"Thanks" I smile, wiping away tears "I want to keep the baby and look after it, but I'm scared that I won't be able to do that properly"

"Come here, love. And you, Jeff, come on" Dixie says, pulling the three of us into a group hug "Come on, we'll get through this. You'll be a fantastic mum, Polly. You worrying so much about it shows how much you care"


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N okay, so I've decided to do something a little different for this chapter…it is set when Polly is 15 and taken into care. Enjoy and please read and review **** xx**

_Polly was silent as her new care/social worker, Savannah, drove her to the children's home for the first time._

"_Alright kiddo? We're here, Cherrieswood House" Savannah said, going round to open the car door for Polly to get out, who currently seemed lost in her own world, simply staring out of the window at her new home. It looked nice enough, well; anything had to be better than where she was before._

"_Right, come on then. Let's get you inside, eh?" Polly nodded, following the young woman inside and into the large hallway._

_The house was huge; Polly could tell that just by looking at the downstairs of it. It was also very noisy; lots of children and young people lived there._

_When everyone suddenly crowded around her to see who the new girl was, Polly moved back, shaking and looking at Savannah for re-assurance. Her confidence and self-esteem were at rock bottom; years of constant abuse and neglect, both physical and emotional, had taken their toll. She was easily frightened and intimidated, hated confrontations and was generally just quite unsure of herself._

"_It's alright" Savannah assured her, smiling "this lot are just nosy. Come on, move back, give her some space all of you. Right, this is Polly, she's 15 years old and she's going to be living here from now on. Has that satisfied your curiosity now?" the group of children nodded and moved away, going back to what they had been doing. All except for one; a tiny girl, about a year old still stood there, looking at Polly who gave her a shy smile. The small smile was enough to encourage the young child that Polly was friendly and she walked slowly towards her, wrapping her arms around Polly's legs affectionately before letting go and reaching her arms up to be lifted._

_Polly wasn't sure how to respond at first, but then instinct kicked in and she picked up the little girl, resting her on her hip and smiling at her._

"_I see you've made a friend already" Savannah smiled "that's Nieve, she is… 1 year and 2 months, only been with us 2 weeks. She'll quite happily follow you around all the time if you let her; she's very friendly, as you've probably noticed! You won't get much peace when she's about, especially when she takes to people as quickly as she took to you. Do you want me to take her or are you alright with her?"_

_Polly spoke for the first time that day "No, I'll keep her, she's cute" smiling at Nieve._

"_Right, I'll show you to your room. You'll be sharing with a girl called Avani, bit older than you, about 16, she's really lovely though" She waited until Polly nodded before continuing and beckoning for her to follow her up the staircase "She won't mind me telling you, she was in a similar situation to you before she came here a few years ago, things weren't great at home for her, either"_

_Savannah stopped at a door covered in flowers and stars and knocked on it "This will be your room. Avani? Avani? Polly's here, the new girl, come and say hello" _

_The door opened and Avani walked out, beaming at Polly._

"_Hiya! I'm Avani, you're Polly, right?" Polly nodded, unsure of how to react; she liked her, she seemed really nice. "Come on in, sorry it's a bit of a mess!"_

"_Right, I'll leave you to get settled in Pol. If Nieve starts being a monkey, just bring her downstairs" Savannah said, sticking out her tongue at the toddler, making her giggle "Yes, you. Anyway, if you need me you know where I am. Alright?"_

"_Thank you" Polly replied quietly, smiling shyly at her._

"_No problem. Have fun you two!"_

"_Come on, come on in!" Avani encouraged gently, seeing how nervous her new roommate was. Polly obediently walked into the room, taking in her new surroundings. It was huge, posters and pictures adorning the walls apart from 2 of them. These walls were blank, and in-between them sat a freshly made bed "I didn't know what kind of things you were into, so I left them blank. But you can decorate them however you want" _

_Polly smiled at her new roommate, she could tell that she was going to like sharing with her "Thanks. The rest of your room looks great. Did you do it all yourself?"_

"_Thank you! Yeah, I did it all, some of the pictures are ones I did, too" she said proudly, pointing some out to Polly._

_Nieve, who seemed to be quite happy just being held, started to play with Polly's shoulder-length hair, twisting it gently around her fingers. Polly smiled at her, and in return received a wet kiss on the cheek from the tiny girl, who grinned back at her. _

"_So, what sort of things you into then?" Avani asked her, wanting to find out more about Polly, who she would be sharing with from now on._

"_Erm…I like music, animals, just nature I guess. How about you?"_

"_Much the same actually, we obviously have a lot in common!" Avani again smiled, the smile lighting up her eyes and making them sparkle. _

_Polly returned the smile, she really liked Avani. She knew she would be alright here._


	22. Chapter 22

Polly was sat up in the ward room, thinking back to her time at the children's home. It had been the best part of her childhood, she'd loved it there and had been genuinely sorry when she had had to leave.

She was in still in touch with Savannah, her care worker, who she still saw fairly regularly even now.

Polly was also still in very close contact with Avani, who had quickly become her best friend as well as her roommate; they usually texted each other most days and met up every couple of weeks, but recently, due to recent events, she hadn't been able to see her. She had, however, asked Dixie to call her and let her know what had happened. Avani was coming to visit her in hospital today, and Polly couldn't wait to see her.

"Hey, you look happy today, Pol" Jeff smiled at her "What's happening that I don't know about?"

"Avani's coming to see me today, I can't wait to see her!"

"Avani? Ohh, Avani, the girl you shared with in the kid's home?"

"Yeah, her, she's brilliant, you'll love her!"

Both Dixie and Jeff grinned back at her, glad to see their friend happy and smiling again. They were looking forward to meeting her, Polly had mentioned her name a few times, but she had never gone into details of how she knew her. Well, not until all of this started, and she told Jeff and Dixie about what had happened to her.

"Well, it'll be nice to be able to put a face to the name we've heard so much of recently!" Dixie laughed, since Polly had found out that Avani was coming to see her, that was pretty much all she had talked about.

It was clear to them both how much this visit meant to Polly; Avani had clearly been a much needed positive influence in her life at that time and it was lovely that they were still so close. Polly really needed someone who knew her well to help her through all of this. Dixie and Jeff could help her as best as they could, but Avani had known her for a lot longer, and knew a lot more about her than both of them put together.

Jeff began to speak again "Look, Pol, I know you're excited, but she won't be here till two-ish. Why don't you try and get some sleep for a while?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right" Polly said, yawning as she spoke.

Jeff and Dixie were in the hospital canteen, letting Polly get some rest while they got something to eat and tried to sort out the paperwork from the agency for the temporary paramedic.

"Right, what do you want, Dix? Coffee? Sandwich?"

"Yeah, please mate" Dixie called over to him, before turning back to her paperwork "Bloody forms" she muttered, making Jeff laugh as he came back over with the food and coffees "Why do they have to be so complicated and confusing? I don't know what you're laughing at, Jeffrey"

"I'm laughing at you getting all worked up over that form" he replied, sticking his tongue out at her.

"Charming" she said, returning the gesture and rolling her eyes at him "Polly's all excited over this visit, isn't she? I haven't seen her so happy in ages"

"Yeah, it's nice to see, isn't it? I'm looking forward to meeting this Avani, after hearing so much about her…"

2 hours later…

Polly had woken up, and was happily chatting to Dixie and Jeff.

"Oh, blimey, it's quarter to already! I said I'd meet Avani outside the E.D…see you later" Dixie said, grabbing her jacket and rushing out of the room.

"So, Polly, tell me more about this Avani…" Jeff said, looking her in the eyes and smiling at her.

Meanwhile, Dixie was stood outside the E.D, waiting for Avani. Suddenly a young girl approached her, she was Asian, had long dark hair that was plaited and she was wearing loads of bangles on her wrists. She looked just like the girl that Polly had described to her earlier, it must be her.

"Hi! Are you Dixie?"

"I am, are you Avani?"

"Yep, lovely to meet you at last. Polly's told me loads about you and your husband, all good of course!"

"Well, that's good to hear, and it's lovely to meet you too Avani. Come on, I'll show you where she is"

"Thank you. How is she?"

"Honestly, she's pretty shaken up by everything, the pregnancy news didn't really help…she's got some quite nasty injuries, but they are managing her pain really well. And she is really, really excited to see you! Your visit is all she's talked about for ages now…and here we are, this is her room"

Dixie pushed open the door to the ward room and walked in, Avani following close behind her.

Avani ran over to Polly, hugging her immediately, but being careful not to aggravate any of her injuries "Hey! How are you?"

"I'm alright, how are you?" Polly beamed at her best friend, she was just so happy to see her again.

"I'm good, I'm good" Avani said, returning the smile.

"Jeff, this is Avani. Avani, this is Jeff" Polly introduced them to each other.

"Lovely to meet you Jeff!" she said, hugging him like she had greeted Polly and Dixie before.

"Lovely to meet you too, Avani" Jeff laughed, hugging her back "We've heard a lot about you so it is nice to finally meet you in person!"

"And the same with both of you two, Polly has told me so much about you"

"Right, come on, Jeff, let's leave them in peace. How long are you stopping for, love?"

"As long as they'll let me!"

"Okay, well I've had a word with the staff, and you're welcome to stay until 8pm when visiting time finishes"

"Brilliant, thanks, Dixie"

"No problem, we'll see you both later. Come on Jeff" Dixie smiled, leading him out of the room and down the corridor.

"So, you've had a pretty rough time of it lately, eh?" Avani asked her friend gently, taking hold of her good hand.

"Yeah, something like that" Polly replied "I've had better months, put it that way!"

"I can imagine! But, hey, the main thing is that you're safe. And Jeff and Dixie will look after you, they're really nice"

"Yeah, they are, they've been great throughout all of this, they really have" Polly replied, taking a deep breath before continuing "The news of the pregnancy came as a bit of a shock to everyone though! I'm gonna keep this baby, and look after it a lot better than my own mother looked after me"

"Congratulations! And good for you, Polly, really, you'll make a fantastic mother. You'll be nothing at all like your own mum. Anyway, her and that thug boyfriend of hers are locked away where they should be, so they won't be hassling you anytime soon"

"Well, that's one good thing, I suppose. It's nice not having to worry about them turning up all the time. Devin even went for Jeff one time when they turned up here!"

"Polly, I know it's hard, but just try and forget about them. They're not worth it, they're really not worth it. Concentrate on you, and the baby!"

"Yeah, it is hard, but I can get through this, just like you did that time your parents showed up at the children's home. And yep, I have the scan tomorrow, so I'll know if it's a boy or a girl; although, I'm not really bothered either way!"

"It's still exciting though, isn't it? Do you have any names in mind?"

"A few, not many though"

"Go on then"

"For a boy; Daniel, Jack or Kieran. For a girl: Isobel, Grace or Nieve"

"Aww! Nieve, like Nieve from the kid's home?"

"Yeah, bless her, I hope she's still happy with her adopted family"

"Yeah, me too, she was lovely, wasn't she?"

Nieve had been adopted not long after Polly left, by a lovely caring family who couldn't have children of their own.

"She was lovely" Polly agreed, looking up when Dixie and Jeff came back in. Glancing at the clock, she saw that it was nearly half past six, she'd had no idea that they had been talking for so long!

Avani too looked to see what time it was and bit her lip "I'd better get going! But I'll come and see you tomorrow, yeah? Same time?" she said, hugging her friend who nodded, smiling at her.

After she had gone, Polly couldn't stop smiling; things were really starting to look up for her now. She had Dixie and Jeff to support her, and she knew that Avani would be there for her every step of the way as well.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N okay, so this is set in the children's home again. Enjoy and please read and review **** xxx**

_Polly had been living at Cherrieswood House, the children's home, for just under a week. She liked it there, well, anything had to better than still being stuck at home with her mum._

_She was getting on well with Avani, her roommate; she was lovely and was really helping Polly to settle in there and show her where things were and telling her who everybody was._

_Avani had liked Polly right from when she met her; well, she was like that with anybody, she was always willing to give everybody that she met a fair chance. _

_She hadn't always been as friendly as she was now though, in fact she was very like Polly, very shy and nervous and easily intimidated. Avani had been in quite similar home circumstances until she had been moved here, like Polly, her early life until she was about 13 years old hadn't been particularly pleasant until she had been moved here. Then things had started to change for the better._

_Kids were in here for all sorts of reasons; abuse, neglect, some had been abandoned at birth and their parents had never tried to find them or get in contact with them._

_Although Polly hadn't really said anything about her home life, she didn't need to; Savannah had told her that her home situation was similar to hers, so she could only guess at what she had been through._

_Avani could only try her best to support her; what Polly needed more than anything right now was a friend._

_Later that day, she had gone upstairs to get something from her room when she heard crying. Was that Polly?_

_She knocked on the door, calling out her roommate's name "Polly? Polly, are you okay? It's me, Avani. It's just me, I promise"_

_Polly opened the door then went and sat back down on her bed, cuddling Nieve close to her._

_Avani frowned when she saw Polly's red eyes and the tear marks on her face, she must have been crying for a while "What's wrong, Pol? You were alright earlier. Has something happened?"_

_Polly shook her head at Avani, focusing instead on holding the young child as close to her as she possibly could without hurting her._

"_Look, you don't have to tell me, but, if you do want to tell me anything, anything at all I won't tell anyone. I promise, not even Savannah, not if you don't want me to"_

"_I trust you" Polly briefly looked up at her friend, then turned her attention back to Nieve_

"_Well, that's a good start! Oh, come here" Avani smiled, pulling her into a hug "do you want to tell me why you're so upset. Because you don't have to, I'm not going to force you" she said, making Polly smile slightly_

"_You sound like my social worker!"_

"_Thanks…I think!"_

"_I just…I just wish that I'd been moved here sooner, you know? Holding this little one, it reminded me of when I was little, waiting outside in all types of weather, waiting for my mum to come back. Most times she wouldn't come back at all, so I don't know why I even bothered, I should've just gone straight round to my neighbour's house…"_

_Avani nodded "I can relate to that, I mean, I don't know what has happened to you, but I was moved here a few years ago…when I was 13 years old…because of neglect and abuse in my home environment, they didn't think it was safe for me to stay there, so I came here. And I'm still here now! I don't mind it though, it's better than being at home, that's for sure"_

_Polly looked up at her properly, making eye contact "I'm sorry, I didn't realise…"_

_Avani just half-smiled at her "Don't be sorry, you weren't to know. All I'm trying to say is that even though I don't know much about what has happened to you, I can relate to what you're telling me, because I've been through similar things myself"_

"_Yeah. Look, I'm sorry, for the crying…"_

"_Don't be daft! I cried all the time when I first came here, ask anyone. I still do, sometimes"_

"_I don't want to be a pain, I mean; you have to share a room with me"_

"_You're not being a pain; you're trying to deal with what has happened to you. It's perfectly normal and a natural response. Anyone else would do the same, just some people hide it better than others, that's all"_

"_Look, thanks, for listening. And just being there for me" Polly said, half-smiling at her friend_

"_Anytime! Right, I'm going outside, you wanna come? And you, trouble?" Avani said, sticking her tongue out at Nieve, making the young toddler giggle and attempt to copy her_

"_Yeah, why not"_

_They were walking down the stairs when they bumped into Savannah. Polly had been deep in thought and hadn't realised that her social worker was there until she spoke_

"_Hiya, girls! Everything alright?" she asked them cheerfully, glancing at Polly and then at Avani, giving her a questioning look_

_Avani looked at her friend, not wanting to say anything unless Polly was happy for her to do so. Polly nodded, looking down at the floor._

"_She was a bit upset earlier, remembering things from home I guess"_

_To their surprise, Polly reached out and hugged Avani, then Savannah, seeming not to want to let go. She had missed out on a lot of emotional support whilst she was growing up, and now she was starting to make up for that._

_Sensing that they needed some time alone, Avani took Nieve and walked with her out into the garden._

"_You alright love?"_

"_Yeah, I'll be alright" Polly muttered, looking at Savannah, reaching back out to her for a hug_

"_Just wanted a cuddle, eh? Nothing wrong with that" she smiled at the young girl, glad that she was starting to open up to them._


	24. Chapter 24

"Ready to go Pol?" Dixie asked, helping into the wheelchair. It was 15 minutes before Polly's first scan to see how the pregnancy was progressing.

"Yeah, ready when you are!" she beamed. Since Avani had come into see her, she had really cheered up. Avani and Jeff had gone to the coffee shop across the road to get to know each other a bit better, whilst Dixie took Polly to her scan.

"Right, we're here" Dixie said, knocking on the door and wheeling Polly in when the nurse had said it was alright for them to go in.

Meanwhile, in the coffee shop, Avani and Jeff were sat at a table, talking.

Jeff spoke first "Thanks for coming to see Polly; you've really cheered her up!"

"You don't need to thank me! She's a mate, and a good one at that, I just wanted to see her and make sure that she was alright. Well, as alright as she can be, given the circumstances…"

"Yeah, she's had a pretty rough time of it lately. Poor kid. Still, at least now her mum and that git are locked up in jail where they belong, so they can't get to her and hurt her again"

"Well, that's one good thing, then. Doesn't sound like they've changed much; though…she told me some of the things that happened to her when she was younger…believe me when I tell you that you probably wouldn't want to know…"

"You know what, I do believe you. I wouldn't be held responsible for my actions if I got my hands on those two, what they've put her through…but anyway, what we need to focus on now is the future, and getting her better"

"Yeah, of course we do, all of us, and the baby"

Back at the hospital, Polly had just had her scan, and was more than a little surprised at what she had seen and been told. She was pregnant with twins! And not just twins, identical twin girls! Her mind was now racing, thoughts crashing into each other in her mind; what was she going to call them, would she be able to give birth naturally? They had told her probably not, due to her injuries; she would most likely need to have a c-section when the time was right.

Talking to people about what had happened to her in the past had really helped her to overcome her fears of becoming a mother herself. They hadn't judged her on what had happened to her, or told her to pull herself together and get on with things. They had listened, given her advice and tried to help her in any way that they could.

As Dixie took her back to the ward, Polly couldn't hide her delight and also couldn't stop smiling, much to her colleague's amusement. Her reaction couldn't have been more different to that of when she had initially found out that she was pregnant; the first time around, she had been constantly doubting her own abilities as to whether she would be a good enough mum or not.

This time, though, she was absolutely ecstatic. She couldn't wait to tell Jeff and Avani her good news.

Polly knew that it would be extremely hard work, especially whilst she was still recovering from her injuries, but she was grateful that she had Jeff, Dixie and Avani there to support her. The worry that she had felt before was now replaced by a much stronger sense of determination; she would be a good mum and nothing like her birth mother was to her.

Dixie broke the silence, just as Jeff and Avani came into the room, not realising that they had returned until she heard Avani's excited squeal after she had spoken "So, identical twin girls. That wasn't exactly what you were expecting, was it Pol?" she laughed, and then turned around to see Jeff and Avani stood in the doorway of the room, stunned.

"Really? Wow, Polly, that's brilliant news, hun!" Avani beamed, rushing over to hug her friend "how are they doing at the moment, then?"

Polly hugged Avani back, the obvious delight at the news she had received was evident in her face; the smile showed in her eyes, making them sparkle "They're doing okay. Well, as okay as we can expect at the moment…there will almost certainly be complications after the birth due to all the different kinds of drugs that I was given before…but we'll get to that when we come to it"

Jeff suddenly spoke up; having found his voice and recovered from the shock of what he had just heard "Congratulations, Polly! I'm so pleased for you, babe, we all are. I mean, it'll be hard work, but you can do it; and you've got me, Dixie and Avani to help you through it. We'll all be here for you, every step of the way"


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N okay, bit of a big time jump here. Polly is now 6 months pregnant, got bored of the day by day theme! Enjoy and please read and review xx**

Several months had passed, and Polly was now 6 months pregnant. A lot had happened in those 5 months; for one thing, she was now out of hospital and was back living with Dixie and Jeff at their home. They had discussed Polly living at her own home when the babies were born, there simply wouldn't be the space at Dixie and Jeff's house.

Determined to make sure that she would be safe, they had had an alarm system installed, as well as cameras all around the outside of her home so that they would know if anyone suspicious was lurking about.

They had all gone shopping for things for the babies a few times, having been told that Polly would only be able to carry the babies to 6, possibly 7, months at the most. If she carried them to full term, she would be putting herself and both of her babies at risk.

The big spare room in Polly's house was now to be the girls' nursery; everyone had pitched in to help and it looked brilliant. The walls were painted with jungle scenes on two walls and there were flowers and butterflies on the others, and the ceiling was covered in fluorescent stars. The furniture was all set up, two cribs were all ready set up, and a large chest of draws and wardrobe sat to the far side of the room by the window. As well as all of this, Polly was fully equipped with clothes, nappies, bottles, toys and everything that she would need to care for her baby girls.

Avani still came to see her regularly, most days in fact, and Polly was finding having her around as well was a great help to everyone. She had recently brought the house across the street from where Polly lived, so that she would be able to help her out and also so that she would be closer to where she worked.

Most of her injuries had healed well; she was now able to walk with support, though her hip and pelvis were still tender and she had to be careful what she did and how long she did things for so that she didn't hurt herself or put the babies at any risk.

Everyone together had agreed that they would help Polly out as much as they could; Avani only worked 3 full days a week, so she could help a lot. With Dixie and Jeff, the trust had been very understanding about what had happened and had granted them a few months of crisis leave on full pay.

Savannah, her care worker from when she was younger, had also been to visit her and see how things were going.

*Flashback*

_A week ago, in the local café…_

"_So, kiddo, how are things going? And congratulations on the pregnancy by the way; twin girls, you'll have your work cut out for you there!" Savannah laughed, smiling at the young girl. It was lovely that they were still in touch; Polly had turned out to be a lovely, confident young woman- so very different than the scared, very shy girl that she'd looked after all those years ago._

"_Thank you! I know, it will be extremely hard work, but I can do it; I won't be the same sort of mother that mine was to me"_

"_Everybody knows that, Polly; you're nothing like her darling, trust me. You'll make a brilliant mum, I could see that straight away when you picked up little Nieve on your first day with us!"_

"_Thanks" Polly blushed slightly, looking away momentarily, and then turning back to face Savannah "and thanks, for everything that you did to help me all that time ago; it's made me who I am today. If I hadn't came to Cherrieswood House, god only knows where I'd be now, and I certainly wouldn't have been able to cope with a pregnancy of identical twin girls"_

"_You're welcome, Polly. It's my job for a start, but it's so much more than that; it's so nice to see kids like you and Avani turn their lives around for themselves, all we did was gave you a push in the right direction…your career, your friends, you did all that, Polly. You did all that, not me or the care home"_

"_Yeah, I guess I did" she smiled "this will definetly be a challenge, a very big challenge in fact, but I can do it!"_

*End flashback*

Today was the day of Polly's 6-month check up scan; they had already warned her at the last scan that depending on how the babies were lying in the womb, that they may have to perform an emergency C-section.

This would mean that the babies would be 3 months premature, and that they would have to be in intensive care, but if they were there and getting the best care possible, then Polly was prepared to do it. There was no point in her carrying them if there was no space for them to grow inside of her womb; she wanted to and was very determined to give them the best possible chance that she could.

At her scan…

The ultrasound scan had just been completed, and it was as they feared. They would have to perform an emergency c-section to get the babies out as there wasn't enough room for both babies to continue to grow.

"Polly, I'm so sorry, but we're going to have to perform a c-section this evening and get the babies out. Keeping them in there will do more harm than good" the midwife said apologetically

"Its okay" Polly replied, with a slight smile "I want them to have to have the best possible chance, and if that means in NICU for a couple of months, then so be it"

Dixie laughed "That's my Polly" she said "Right, I'll phone Jeff and Avani, get an overnight bag sorted for you and stuff for the girls. Is everything else okay, love? Is Polly going to be okay?"

The midwife smiled, she had seen many people in Polly's position before "If we do the c-section tonight, Polly will be absolutely fine. As for the babies, we won't know what damage the drugs have done until they arrive; but health wise, they look healthy so far"

Later that evening…

"Dixie I'm scared" Polly whimpered "What if something goes wrong? What if something happens to them?"

"Everything will be all right, lovie, you heard the midwife. By getting them out, we're giving them the best possible chance. I promise, as soon you come round from the anaesthetic and they're sure you're alright, we'll go and see them. Okay?"

"Okay" she whispered, squeezing Dixie's hand

"I'll see you really soon, Pol" Dixie smiled, letting go of her hand and allowing Mac to take her to theatre.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N thanks for all the reviews, and thank you to channelson.4444 for all the help and help with the names xx**

Dixie, Jeff and Avani were all sat in Polly's room, waiting for her to come round from the anaesthetic. The operation had gone reasonably well, the babies were out and were breathing well.

However, there had been a few complications; the drugs that Polly had been given had ultimately led to a lack of oxygen for the babies and one was in severe distress when they had come to do the c-section.

After the c-section, there had been an almost immediate dignosis of cerebral palsy for both of the girls, although the one who had been in distress was more severely affected and was also completely blind. The other had up to 45% vision, but this could be improved as she got older with glasses.

Although all this news was a lot to take in, they were all just so glad to hear that there was no obvious health problems; both girls had a healthy pair of lungs on them, that was for sure! They had been transferred up to NICU.

Polly began to regain consciousness, opening and closing her eyes a few times before opening them fully and looked around in alarm, before she realised what had happened.

But, before anyone had chance to speak, Polly spoke, making everyone jump "Are they alright? Can I see them?"

"Polly, please do not do that!" Jeff laughed, getting over the slight shock "you scared me, I didn't realise you were awake. How are you feeling?"

"Fine" Polly persisted, getting increasingly worried "Will someone please just tell me what's happening? I want to know what is happening with my baby girls! Are they safe, are they alright?"

At this point, she broke down in tears and Avani rushed over to her, pulling her friend into a comforting hug and taking Polly's hands in hers "Polly, listen to me. Your babies are safe, both of them. They're upstairs in NICU, and as soon as we get the all clear from the nurses and doctors, we'll go and see them, okay?" Polly nodded, lying back and resting her head on the pillow.

A nurse came in, and checking Polly' stats she smiled "Looks like you're over the worst of it. You feeling okay, not queasy or nauseous?" Polly shook her head "well if you can spare me 15 minutes, I'll take you up to NICU to see them, alright?"

"Thank you!" she gasped, getting excited at the prospect of meeting them both for the first time.

The nurse spoke again, her voice softer this time "There are some things I must warn you of, Polly" Polly nodded in understanding and she continued "Both babies are breathing well; they both have a good pair of lungs on them! The good news is there was no evidence of Down's syndrome, cystic fibrosis, epilepsy, or global developmetal delay syndrome, or any problems with the main organs that can be seen at the moment. However, there were a few complications, as I'm sure you were aware could happen; the drugs that you were given ultimately led to a lack of oxygen for the babies and one was in severe distress when the c-section was performed.

After the c-section, an almost immediate diagnosis of cerebral palsy for both of the girls was made, although the one who was in distress was more severely affected and she is also completely blind. The other has between 35 and 40% vision, but this could be improved as she gets older with glasses, and other treatments. The hearing for both of them appears to be absolutely fine, luckily. Both girls have moderate learning difficulties and also with speech there will be issues later on but we won't know to what extent until they are older. I'm so sorry Polly"

"Its fine" she replied, although everyone in the room could tell that wasn't the truth. No matter how much warning she had had about these sorts of things, she still wasn't fully expecting it. "When can I see them?"

Dixie spoke up gently, putting her arm around Polly and stroking her hair "Why don't we give it half an hour or so?" she said, glancing to the midwife who nodded at her "it'll give you time to fully recover from the anaesthetic and take things in a bit. Do you want us to stay, or would you rather be on your own?"

"Stay, please" she said quietly, her eyes welling up with tears "I don't want to be on my own"

"We ain't gonna leave you, princess, not if you don't want us to" Jeff said, kissing Polly on the top of her head "You've done so well so far, babe, you can't give up now. You've got two little girls who'll be waiting for their mummy"

"You're their mummy, Polly, that's the most important thing. And, they're gonna love you so much, they'll know your voice already" Avani smiled, going to join the small group at the side of the bed.

Suddenly, realisation dawned on Polly; she was a mum! No matter how many problems these girls had, that would never change, not ever. At every scan and just now she had been told it was a miracle that they were even alive after all the drugs and mistreatment she had endured whilst conceiving them.

"I'm a mum!" she squealed, excitement getting the better of her now, and a smile breaking out on her face, lighting up her eyes and making them sparkle.

"That you are, Pol, that you are" Dixie laughed, smiling at the midwife as she came back in "Ready?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Polly almost screamed with excitement, but managed to contain herself.

Soon they arrived at the entrance to NICU; Polly was to go in first with the midwife, then the others would be allowed in once Polly had had some time with her baby girls.

"Ready, Polly?" the midwife smiled as Polly nodded her head and beamed at her; this was the best part of her job by far "just clean your hands with this antibacterial gel and we can go in"

Polly did as she was told quickly, then handed it back to her.

"Okay, here we go then" she told Polly, wheeling her inside and in to the middle of the room where her babies were in incubators side by side, tubes and machines attached to them.

"They're so tiny!" she gasped. One of the babies opened her eyes at this, and let out a soft cry, as if trying to attract her mother's attention. "Can I touch them?" the midwife nodded, opening the hatches so that Polly could see each of them.

Whilst Polly rushed to the baby who had cried, Casey, the midwife explained "This is the one who went into distress. You caused us some grief, missy" she laughed.

Polly put her hand on top of her daughter's, causing her to cry softly again, quieter this time "It's okay, she said, rubbing circles into her palm "mummy's here, I'm right here baby girl" this seemed to calm the tiny baby enough for her to fall asleep again so Polly went to see her twin sister, saying the same things to her, then just standing back and looking at her beautiful babies, tears of happiness in her eyes.

Casey signalled that the others could come in and they all came and stood by Polly, each hugging her in turn.

Jeff was first to speak "Polly they're beautiful, babe. They've got your looks!"

"He's right" Dixie said, making Jeff smirk at what Dixie had just acknowledged "Do you have any ideas for names?"

Polly nodded "Yeah I do" she stepped forward to the baby who although couldn't see her, had shown her that she knew her mother was there "this, is Isabel. Isabel Rose Emmerson" she now walked round to the other incubator when her other twin daughter was "and this, is Nieve. Nieve Coral Emmerson. Avani helped me choose the names" she smiled, beaming at her friend and then at everyone in the room.

Casey smiled "I'll write it on their wristbands so we don't get them mixed up" she laughed, pulling out a pen.

Avani spoke next "They're lovely names, Pol, for two lovely girls"

"Yeah, they are. And you know what the best thing is? They are my two lovely girls! I couldn't have asked for two better daughters"


	27. Chapter 27

Still in NICU with her two baby daughters; Isabel and Nieve, Polly smiled. They were both so lovely, and better still, they were both hers. Although she understood that both girls needed to stay here for a while longer to give them the best possible chance, she couldn't wait to take them home.

"Polly? You ready to go hun?" Avani said, putting her hand on Polly's shoulder. After kissing them both, she nodded. Avani was going to take her home while Dixie and Jeff stayed at the hospital.

Once they were both back at Polly's house, Avani helped her to sit down, and then went into the kitchen to make a drink.

"You want tea Pol?" on getting no reply, she went into the lounge where her friend was sat on the sofa. Seeing her in tears, Avani rushed over to her, putting her arms around her, completely forgetting what she had come in here to ask her.

"I d-don't want to l-leave them" Polly whispered, through her sobs "I want to be with my girls" Avani nodded in understanding, and then sighed quietly. Polly wanted to be with her girls at the hospital, she felt like she was failing them by not being there.

"I know. But, you need to look after yourself as well, Polly. Do you want a cup of tea?" she asked her softly, waiting until Polly had nodded in response before leaving the room.

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Dixie and Jeff were talking.

Dixie spoke first "They're gorgeous, aren't they?" she grinned, making Jeff chuckle lightly at her "What are you laughing at? They are!"

"Yeah they are, both of them look just like Polly, bless them. No doubt she'll have her work cut out for her when she takes them home, though…"

"That is very true…but…she won't be on her own, though, will she? She'll have us; you, me and Avani to help her out. She just needs to make sure that she takes care of herself as well as them…"

Jeff frowned momentarily before replying "That could prove easier said than done, Dix! Remember how long it took us to persuade her to go home for one day?"

Polly had calmed down fairly quickly, and she was now fast asleep. Avani smiled, grabbing some washing, putting it into the washing machine and turning it on. She was just glad that Polly was getting some decent quality sleep, she looked absolutely exhausted.

Avani didn't mind helping out; Polly had always been there for her whenever she had needed her in the past, and she was determined to be there for her friend and do whatever she could to help her out.

Everything would be a lot easier now that April and Devin were being held in police custody, awaiting trial. She had only encountered them twice, whilst Polly was living at the children's home, but that was enough. From what Polly had told her over the years, they were capable of things much worse than she had been told by her friend. That was maybe for the best, though; she probably wouldn't want to know about most of the things that had happened that she didn't already know about.

Polly woke up, stretching and looking around "Avani?" she called out, looking around for her friend

"You alright, Pol? Are you feeling a bit better now you've had some sleep?" Avani smiled, sitting down next to her on the sofa

"Yeah, a bit better, thanks"

"Good. So how about we get something to eat, and then head back out to the hospital?" Polly nodded, smiling again at her friend; she was really glad that Dixie had contacted her when she was in hospital. Having Avani there as well as Dixie and Jeff made things a lot easier to manage; Avani knew her better than anyone else.

Once they had eaten and Polly had had a shower and got changed, they headed back out towards the hospital so that Polly could see her baby girls. Then, they would come back to Polly's house for the night.

Half an hour later, in NICU…

"Hello, my baby girls! Mummy's back" Polly said, a bright smile on her face as she spoke. Isabel, the twin who was completely blind, began to cry, trying to attract her mother's attention. She had been really quiet until Polly came back in and started speaking, and then she had heard her voice and wanted to be with her mother.

"Hey, hey, hello baby" Polly cooed, putting her hand over her daughter's "I'm here sweetheart, I'm right here. How have they been?" she asked Dixie

"They've been really good, hardly cried at all" Dixie smiled "Nieve had a bit of a wobble earlier, got herself a bit upset, but she's been fine since"

"You been causing trouble?" Polly chuckled softly, looking over at her now sleeping daughter. Turning back to Isabel, she added "How about you? Have you been good, missy?" after a moment, her daughter's tiny fingers wiggled slightly, as if answering her mother.

"She's been no trouble; she was asleep until about half an hour ago, weren't you darling?"

"Aww, good girl. My two good girls" Polly smiled, hugging Dixie, Jeff and Avani in turn.


	28. Chapter 28

2 months later…

Today was the day, the day that Polly was finally going to be able to take her baby girls home; she couldn't wait.

Avani was working, so Dixie had stayed at Polly's house with her, and they would meet Jeff at the hospital later that morning.

6:30am "Dix? Dixie!" Polly said, gently shaking her awake.

"Polly, what? You do realise we're not due to pick the girls up until 9:30, don't you? That's 3 hours away!" she grumbled, trying to scowl at her friend but not quite managing it; she just looked so excited, Dixie wondered if she had actually slept at all that night.

"Dixie…" she pleaded, smiling and hugging her when she sat up; she couldn't wait to pick them up and have them at home with her.

"Urgh, alright I'm up! Doesn't look like I'm going to get any more sleep, does it? Right, come on then, we should probably get some breakfast…"

"Yay!" she squealed with excitement, jumping up and down then running into the girl's nursery and looking around it in awe. The big spare room in Polly's house was now to be the girls' nursery; everyone had pitched in to help and it looked brilliant. The walls were painted with jungle scenes on two walls and there were flowers and butterflies on the others, and the ceiling was covered in fluorescent stars. The furniture was all set up, two cots were all ready set up, and a large chest of draws and wardrobe sat to the far side of the room by the window. As well as all of this, Polly was fully equipped with clothes, nappies, bottles, toys and everything that she would need to care for her baby girls.

Jeff had come round a couple of days ago to finish everything off, and to add finishing touches; he'd been round most days or just whenever he had a few spare hours, he had really enjoyed helping out with it. And he would do anything for Polly, anything at all to help her; she deserved it after the last 8 months or so, she'd really been through a hell of a lot.

Polly walked over to the two cots and stood in between them; all that was left to do now was to fish out the blankets and attach the mobiles to the headboard of each cot. She went over to the chest of drawers and pulled out the two blankets; they were hand embroidered by her aunt, who loved to sew. Each blanket had the girl's name on, and different types of flowers all over it. Smiling she draped each one over the side of each cot, then attached the mobiles to the headboards, making sure that they were secure and weren't going to fall off.

Looking around the rest of the room, Polly couldn't stop smiling; she was just so excited to be finally bringing them home! Aside from the cots and general nursery furniture, there were two jungle gyms on the floor, two highchairs and a feeding area. Attached to the nursery was a little utility room which would be used as a changing room.

The rest of the house was suitably baby-proofed as well; there were safety gates at the top and bottom of the stairs as well as going in and out of all the rooms, plug sockets were covered over etc. Friends from work had helped out a lot as well; Polly had been given loads of baby equipment for her girls which would help her out.

"Polly! Come and get some breakfast, love" Dixie shouted up the stairs to her.

"Okay, coming!"

"There you go, get that down you and then we'd better get ready to go" Dixie laughed at the beaming smile that suddenly appeared on Polly's face, it was lovely to see her happy again and back to her usual self.

1 hour later…

Dixie pulled up in the hospital car park and got out. They went up to NICU, carrying two baby carriers and blankets.

Polly wasted no time in signing them both in, then rushing into the room to see her baby girls "Hello, you two, ready to go home?" she cooed, earning a short cry from Isabel and a raspberry from Nieve. She assumed that these responses meant yes.

Walking over first to Nieve, she very carefully picked her up for the first time; they had had to stay in the incubators whilst they had been in NICU; and walked around with her for a few moments before stopping and placing her into her car seat, making sure that all the straps were buckled tightly. Nieve cried when her mother put her down, clumsily and shakily attempting to reach back out to her, but not quite managing it.

Polly took hold of her daughter's hand and smiled at her "Alright, Nieve, I'm here, mummy's here" she told her, tucking the blanket in around her.

She then repeated the process with Isabel, ensuring that she was safely strapped in to the car seat and tucked her blanket around her.

"Come on then!" Polly said cheerfully, picking up one car seat in each hand and walking out of NICU and towards the car.

Jeff and Dixie exchanged glances and followed her out, both smiling at each other as they could easily see how happy she was.

Once everyone was strapped in, Jeff started the car and began the half hour drive back to Polly's house. "We're here!" he said, stopping the engine and climbing out.

"Alright Pol?" Dixie asked her, taking Isabel's car seat and walking up the drive with her

"Yeah, I'm fine, better than fine" she smiled, walking inside.

"Come on then girls, shall we go upstairs?" Polly said, opening the door that led into the nursery.

Polly took Nieve out of her car seat and sat down, placing the baby on her lap and supporting her so that she could lean against her mother.

Dixie took Isabel out, and carefully laid her down in her cot. Hearing her start to cry at being put down, she turned on the music on the mobile to try and distract her; it worked, in seconds Isabel had stopped crying and was listening intently to the new sounds, trying to work out where it was coming from.

Nieve had quickly fallen asleep on Polly, so she stood up and gently laid her down in her cot so as not to wake her. The music seemed to have soothed both girls, so Polly decided to leave it on for a while longer while they were both sleeping.

Going into the kitchen, she hugged Dixie and then Jeff "Thank you!" she said "I could never have done this without you, or Avani"

"It's no problem, princess, no problem at all!" Jeff laughed, seeing Dixie nod; they would all help her out whenever she needed it.


	29. Chapter 29

Polly was sat on floor in the living room with her girls. Nieve started to cry, so Polly picked up and cradled her in her arms, rocking her back and forth in an attempt to calm her down. It took a few minutes, but eventually the young baby calmed down, resting her head on her mother's chest.

Polly smiled at her young daughter "Good girl" she said "that's a good girl, you rest now little one". A sudden knock at the door made her jump, and she placed Nieve down on the mat underneath the jungle gym that was next to her sister's, sighing as she started to cry again but soon settled when she was given a soft bear to hold.

She got up and went to answer the door.

"Hello. I am Police detective inspector Alex, are you Miss Emmerson?" he took a wallet out of his pocket and opened it, revealing his ID badge.

Polly just stared at him, she began to shake a little bit staring at the man, not really knowing what to say to him. He had chestnut brown hair and dark brown eyes, he looked a few years older than her, he was also a couple of inches taller than her.

"May I come in?" Alex asked her politely, he looked at Polly, part of him felt sorry for her; he knew her story and there was something about her that he liked. He wasn't sure what it was exactly, but he liked her.

"What do you want?"

"Well it is raining, quite heavily actually. So I would like to come in and speak to you?"

Polly noticed he was right, he was standing there getting soaked in the pouring rain.

"Course" Polly reluctantly let him in, leading him into the kitchen; her girls were in the living room. She didn't want him with her babies. Nobody went anywhere near them unless she knew them, and she didn't know him.

"What is it?" Polly said, not looking at him. She got some mugs out, then she handed Alex a towel from the airing cupboard, she didn't want him getting too cold.

"Well, you are our main witness for this case"

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that to get April and Devin the sentences they deserve, we would need you to give evidence against them. We were hoping you would come into court next week" Polly stopped what she was doing, turning to glare at Alex, then looked away again.

She felt her blood run cold, she shook her head, she didn't want to be in the same room as her mum and Devin. What if they got to her again?

"Polly... I know this is hard, you would be well protected"

"Um... Yeah! That's what you lot said last time! What happened?! I got kidnapped, raped and ended up pregnant!" Polly spat harshly. "I'm not doing it!"

"Polly, I know this isn't what you were expecting to hear. I know that this can't be easy for you..."

"No, you don't! You don't know anything about me or what happened before, you don't know anything!"

Alex nodded, he knew this was going to be tricky.

"I understand, look though. Here is my number, change your mind, please call me"

"Fine, now get out!" she yelled at him, turning her back on Alex and walking into the living room where Isabel was now crying hysterically, the noise must have scared her she thought. She walked over to her and picked her up "I'm sorry baby, mummy's sorry" she murmured, holding her close to her, sighing when she heard the front door close. Polly felt a bit bad for shouting at him; she didn't really know how she felt at that moment. He had seemed nice, like he genuinely wanted to help her.

He placed a card with his number on the kitchen table, he put the towel on the side, then left her house. He wanted to help her, there was something about her that he felt the need to protect.

A knock at the door bought her out of her thoughts and she stood up, still holding Isabel in her arms, and she walked into the hallway to open the door. 'What now?' she thought, not bothering to look at who was stood there as she opened the door.

"Urgh, what do you want now? I thought I told you to get out and to stay out!" she yelled.

"Erm, okay, should I go then?" Avani took a deep breath as she waited for her friend to reply. What had happened to upset her so much?

"W-what, no, no, sorry, not you! Come in" Polly said, holding the door open so that Avani could come in. Shutting it once she was inside, Polly walked back down the hallway and into the living room, trying to comfort her frightened daughter; she wasn't used to hearing her mother shout and it had scared her.

"Polly? Polly, what's happened?"

"Nothing" Polly muttered under her breath, not wanting to tell her the real reason; she would only try and talk her round, as would Dixie and Jeff.

"Ohh, come off it. I know you better than that!"

"Yeah, I suppose you do…"

"So?"

"So what?"

"Polly, cut the act, you're not fooling anyone. What happened?"

Polly looked up at her friend, she knew that she was only trying to help, but, that just made her feel worse and she burst into tears, laying Isabel down on the floor.

"Hey, hey come on; I wasn't having a go at you. What is it, what's wrong?" Avani asked her, pulling Polly into a hug.

"Policeman came round earlier…wants me to give evidence next week at the court hearing…"

"Ah. Right, and what did you say to him?"

"That I wouldn't do it, well, in more words than that, but you get the point…"

"Polly! Why don't you want to do it?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Not really"

"They'll be there, both of them. I don't want to have to be in the same room as them…"

"Ohh, Pol, come here" Avani said, reaching out to hug her again.

Half an hour later…

Dixie and Jeff were now at Polly's house; Avani had rung Jeff to fill them in on what had happened earlier and they had agreed to come over.

Between the three of them, with a lot of persuasion, they had managed to get Polly to agree to speak to the officer again…hopefully more calmly this time.

A knock at the door made everyone look up, and Dixie looked at Polly, nudging her "Go on, then, let him in…calmly"

"Fine" she muttered, getting up and walking down the hallway to answer the door.

"Hello" Alex greeted her, smiling, he was still was quite surprised that she had asked him to come back "nice to see you again"

"Wasn't my descision, trust me. You coming in then?"

"Yes, thank you" he answered politely, ignoring the distinct sarcasm in her voice; the last thing he wanted to do was to set her off again.

"In here" Polly pointed to the living room, the she went inside and sat down next to Dixie, allowing her to re-assure her by putting her arm around her shoulders.

Polly quickly introduced Alex to everyone, then looked away from him and turned her attention to a picture on the wall.

"Right, I'll get to the point then. Polly, if you would be willing to do so, we would like…"

He was cut off by Polly's reply "No, I'm not willing and I'm not doing it. What part of no don't you get?!"

Jeff shot her a warning look, but didn't say anything, letting Alex continue "Listen, Polly, I know how hard this is for you, and I don't blame you for not wanting to be there, but hear me out, please. You would be well protected, we would make sure of that; April and Devin will be restrained and on the other side of the court room, they will be nowhere near you"

Fear took over her, but instead of crying, she verbally lashed out before running out of the room "No! I'm not doing it…I'm not willing, I don't agree or consent or whatever and I am NOT DOING IT!"

Dixie and Jeff exchanged glances before Dixie spoke, then got up to find Polly "Look, sorry mate…she isn't usually like this; she's scared"

"Polly?" she quickly spotted her in the kitchen, and went over to her "What was all that about, eh?"

"I don't want to, you can't make me if I don't give my consent, and I don't!"

Ignoring the temptation to shout back at her, Dixie spoke calmly; shouting would only wind her up more, and that was the last thing they needed "Polly, think about it…do you want them to get away with this, and be out there, doing this to other people? Because that's what will happen if you don't give evidence"

"No, I don't want to, and I'm not going to"

"Polly…"

"I said no!"

Dixie sighed, getting up and silently exiting the room; Polly needed time to cool off, they weren't going to get anywhere while she was so wound up. She shook her head as Jeff gave her a questioning look, then sat down on the sofa.

They sat in silence for a while, well, there wasn't really anything to say. After about 10 minutes, they heard crying. Polly.

"I'll go" Jeff offered "I'm the only one she hasn't yelled at yet"

Walking into the kitchen he spotted her, curled up in the corner by the back door, tears streaming down her face.

He didn't say anything, just pulled out a chair and sat down at the table and looked out of the window, hoping to defuse the situation before it got out of hand again.

It didn't take long before Polly stood up and walked over to him, but stopping a few metres away from him and staring at the floor.

"Come here" Jeff walked over to her, enveloping her in a hug "come on, it's alright, no-one's mad at you, we just want to help you" he attempted to pull away so that he could make eye contact with her, but Polly clung to him, crying and refusing to let go.

Eventually, he managed to calm her down, and she had reluctantly agreed to go and speak to Alex again.

Dixie smiled at them both as they came back into the living room "You alright, Pol?"

The young girl nodded, apologising to her friend with her eyes. Dixie nodded at Alex, letting him know that it was okay for him to start talking again.

"Polly, are you going to do this? I can promise you, here and now, that you will be safe; I won't let them hurt you again"

Polly nodded "I'll do it" she said, her voice barely audible but loud enough to make everyone in the room look up and smile.

"Thank you, this will help in the long term, you know"

"I'll show you out"

Polly got to her feet, waiting for Alex to follow her "Sorry" she muttered, looking down at the floor.

"What for?"

"For being such a pain"

"Meh, I've had worse clients, far worse!" he smiled at her, in a way that Polly couldn't be sure if he was flirting with her or not. She was a little nervous about the court hearing next week, but she knew that she would be safe, and she had Dixie, Jeff and Avani to support her all the way.


	30. Chapter 30

Polly breathed a long sigh of relief as the judge called for a break, and she was finally able to get outside and get some fresh air.

"Polly?" a voice said from behind her after a few minutes; she turned to see Alex stood there "you alright? We'd better go back inside; they will be starting again soon…"

"Yeah, I guess you're right, I just want today to be over with, you know?" Polly said, staring in to the distance as she spoke.

"Well the sooner we go in there, the sooner it will be over" he smiled; his new found feelings for her were becoming apparent.

3 hours later…

"Happy?" Alex asked her, although he could see from her face that she was more than happy with the sentences that her mum and Devin had been given; 12 years each in a high security prison.

"Yeah! Thanks, Alex, and I really mean it…I know that I probably haven't been your easiest client…"

"Oh, you'd be surprised…" Alex laughed, he really liked her, but he didn't yet know if she felt the same way as he did "Listen, I'd better get back, and you need to go home to your girls…"

Alex turned to leave, smiling at Polly before he did so "Wait!" Polly called out "Alex, wait…I don't know how to say this so I'm just going to have to come out and say it…I like you, like _really_ like you" inwardly she cursed herself, knowing that she was blushing, why did she have to say that? What if he didn't feel the same way?

"Polly, I, I I-I feel the same as you do, I guess I was scared to ask you in case you said no" Alex stammered, making eye contact with her "so what happens now?"

"Well, we're both consenting adults, aren't we? So I think that if we both feel the same way, we should go for it" Polly said, surprised at how confident she felt; she guessed it was because the court hearing had gone so well, she felt like she could tackle anything at that moment.

Alex, too, seemed a little taken aback at her newly found confidence, but not in a bad way "Okay, that sounds good to me. How about I take you home then?"

"That would be good, thank you" Polly beamed, the smile spreading to her eyes and making them sparkle in the sunlight of the warm autumn evening.

Once they reached Polly's house, Alex noticed that she suddenly seemed on edge, as though something was bothering her; the reality of the situation must have kicked in, he thought. "Pol? You alright?" he asked gently, taking her hands in his and looking directly at her "What's wrong?"

"I'll sound stupid…" she muttered, avoiding his gaze and choosing instead to look out of the car window.

"No, you won't. Tell me"

"I don't want to be on my own in the house, with the girls" Polly said, and then she added "Dixie and Jeff, and Avani, they've been great, but they can't be there all of the time…"

Alex nodded in understanding "I understand, that doesn't sound silly at all, Polly. It's perfectly natural" he paused for a moment, thinking carefully about how to phrase his next sentence "I could stay, if you want me to, that is?"

Polly looked at him "Would you mind?"

"No! No of course I wouldn't mind, if you want me to stay then I'll stay"

Polly walked into her flat, Alex behind her, she came face to face with Dixie holding one of the twins, Nieve.

"Hiya love, how did it go?"

"12 years each" Polly said with a small smile on her face, Dixie passed Nieve over to her then picked up Isabel, who was crying "Hey... Mummy's here" Polly gently rocked Nieve and kissed her on the cheek; she saw Dixie holding the other baby closely and smiled to herself.

"That's great news! And nothing less than they deserved, either…and you're okay, Polly?" at this point, Dixie carefully placed the young baby down in her cot, and went over to her friend, enveloping her in a warm hug "Well I had better get going, I'll see you in a day or so, yeah?" Dixie left the flat, leaving Polly and Alex alone; she could tell by Polly's eyes that she liked him.

"Want me to put the kettle on Pol?"

"Umm...yes please, but the girls need feeding"

"I'll give you some privacy" Alex smiled then left the room, he knew that Polly would want some privacy for breastfeeding the girls and he respected that. He put the kettle on; Polly had agreed to let him sleep there tonight, saying something about him making her feel safe. He liked that.

4 hours later...

Polly woke up screaming and tossing and turning in bed. Before she could calm herself and regain her balance, she fell out of bed, hitting her head hard against the bedside table.

Alex had heard all the noise and went upstairs to see what was happening.

"Hey Polly! It's me! Alex! You're safe" Alex saw her looking at him, fear flashed momentarily in her eyes before her tired brain registered who he was. She was vulnerable, he noticed the blood tricking from her head, he was going to need to look at that.

Polly looked at Alex, she was shaking in the dark, Alex flicked the bedside lamp on, seeing a small but fairly deep cut at the top of Polly's head, by her hairline, he sighed and took his shirt off, placing it towards her head.

"There we go, we need to stop this bleeding"

"I know, I am a paramedic you know" she said, wincing as the blood clotted and he cleaning out the cut. Her comment made Alex laugh; at least he knew that she wasn't concussed.

"I know... You're a mummy too" Alex saw the small smile creep across Polly's lips and a sparkle appear in her eyes, he always saw the same happiness when he mentioned her girls, it showed how much she cared for them.

"I am...Alex, why do you like me?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'm damaged... Horrible and disgusting"

"No, you're not. Trust me you're not" Alex looked directly into her eyes; trying to comfort Polly in anyway he could, even if that meant revealing his secret.

"How do you know?"

"Because I have more in common with you than you might think at the moment, a lot more...I was abused, sexually, for a period of time in my early teens…let's just get your head sorted, eh?" Alex said, trying to keep his composure but shaking as he said the final few words. Polly felt instantly bad, staring into Alex's eyes, he looked like he was about to cry.

"I'm sorry"

"It wasn't your fault Pol. It's done, in the past. And this isn't yours, you need to move on with your life and forget about them, I know it's hard but you need to do it, for the twins' sakes" Alex said, Polly nodded knowing there was a lot of truth in his words.

She looked at his muscular build as he held the shirt to her head, it made her feel warm inside looking at his chest, his hair was ruffled and it had gone messy, Polly found it rather cute, she did like the look of him, but could she trust him?

**Thanks 4444 for all your help with the story so far, this chapter is dedicated to you **** thank you for all the reviews and comments so far. Enjoy! x**


	31. Chapter 31

Polly and Alex sat in silence on the edge of her bed for a while until one of the twins started to cry, making them both jump.

"Issy" Polly said, quickly recognising her daughter's distinctive cry, going to get up and walk into the nursery "I'll go"

"No" Alex told her sternly "You've just had a serious knock to the head, I'll go"

"But she's crying…and she's _my _daughter" Polly said, scowling at him.

Alex sighed, he knew how protective she could be, but he also knew that she had had a nasty bang to the head and that she should be resting "Polly" he told her in a determined tone of voice "I will go, if its anything more than a dirty nappy I will bring her in, okay?"

Polly reluctantly nodded her consent, and Alex walked through into the girl's nursery, smiling when he saw that at least Nieve hadn't been woken up by the noise and was still sleeping peacefully, he wasn't sure how she had managed it, though.

Isabel, on the other hand, was by now crying hysterically. Alex picked her up and felt that she was wet, so took her over to the changing table to change her nappy, hoping this would calm her down.

It worked for a split second, but once she heard Alex's voice she started to cry again, instantly realising that it wasn't her mother and wanting to go to her "Come on, Issy, Mummy's tired, she needs to sleep. And so do you…"

"Bring her in, Alex; she's not going to settle anytime soon. If you put back down she will just wake Nieve up as well" Polly called through from her room, smiling as Alex brought her daughter into the room and handed her to her mother.

"What's up with you then?" Polly cooed at her, automatically manoeuvring her daughter into the cradle position, hoping that the close contact would soothe her. She rocked her back and forth in her arms, but still her daughter would not settle, so Polly put her hand on her forehead, frowning when she found she was quite warm. "Alex, can you get me the thermometer strip please? It's in the bathroom, top shelf"

Alex nodded and went into the bathroom to get it. When he came back with the thermometer, Polly took it from him and placed the temperature strip across her daughter's forehead, holding her still with one hand and with the other holding it in place "Right her temperature's fairly high, it's 38 degrees, can you pass me my phone please? Thanks; I need to ring Jeff, Dixie's on shift tonight, and ask him what to do. Her ear is quite red as well, that looks sore, poor Issy. That's come on quickly, it wasn't there when we got back, was it?"

Alex shook his head "No, it wasn't" he confirmed "I'll go and check on Nieve" he said, going into the nursery.

Polly dialled Jeff's number; cradling Isabel close to her while she waited for him to answer. She felt bad ringing him at this time, but she didn't know what else to do "Hello, Polly?" Jeff's sleepy voice answered "You alright?"

"Hi, Jeff, look I'm sorry to ring you at this time, but I don't know what else to do. It's Isabel" she started.

"Is she okay? What's wrong with her?" Jeff asked, concern evident in his voice. He cared for her and the girls like Dixie and Avani, and hopefully, Alex did too.

"I don't know, she just woke up crying and crying and she wouldn't stop, so Alex bought her in. She's been changed, cuddled, fed but she won't stop crying. Her temperature is at 38 degrees and her ears look really red and sore" Polly said, she knew she was talking very quickly, but she was worried, panicking because she didn't know what was wrong with her daughter.

"Okay, anything else?" Jeff said, putting the phone onto speaker phone and getting into his clothes.

"Erm, no not really, she's really pale and clingy, but that's it, I think"

"Right, I'm coming over. Is Nieve okay?"

"I think so; Alex has gone to check on her"

"Okay, I'll be there in 10 minutes"

"Thanks, Jeff"

Alex came back in, giving Polly a questioning look "Nieve's still sleeping, did you get Jeff?"

"Yeah, he's coming over" she said quietly, panicking when a thought came to her "Shit, Alex, what if it is meningitis?"

"Polly, calm down, let Jeff look at her when he gets here. He'll be able to tell if it is that, or something else, he is a fully qualified paramedic" he reminded her, trying to calm the young woman down "Besides, how are you feeling? Not sick or dizzy?"

"I'm fine; I don't feel sick or dizzy"

"Okay, fine but…" he was cut off as the doorbell rang and he rushed to answer it "Jeff, come in, she's upstairs"

"Polly?" Jeff called up to her as he ran up the stairs to her room.

"In here" she replied, making room for him to sit down.

"Okay, let's have a look at you then missy" he smiled at the tiny baby in his arms. Not looking up from Isabel, he added "What happened to your head?"

"Ohh, I'm fine, I had a nightmare, fell out of bed and cut my head. I'm fine, really! What's wrong with my daughter?" Polly asked anxiously. On hearing Nieve begin to cry, Polly went into the nursery and bought her back in to her room where Jeff looked at her curiously.

"She alright?"

"No, she's got a temperature as well, 37.5 degrees. And her ears are red as well, but not as red as her sister's"

Jeff took a look at both girls and then looked at Polly "Polly, I need you to stay calm, okay. If not for my sanity, then for their sakes, okay?"

Polly did the opposite, she panicked. Most people only said that when something was wrong "What's wrong with them? What's happening? Is it meningitis?"

"Polly! Listen to me, you need to stay calm and listen to me. We need to take them both into the ED and get them checked over, and then we'll know. And I can take a proper look at your head as well"

"I'm fine!"

"I'm sure you are, but I'm not going to take any chances. You take Nieve; I'll take Isabel and put them in the car. Yours, seeing as that is where the car seats are. Let Alex know we're going in as well"

Once they were at the hospital, they went to reception but were quickly approached by Tom "What's going on?" he asked, looking at the two girls.

"Okay, Isabel and Nieve Emmerson. Twin girls, 2 months old. Polly rang me, asking me to come over and check them over. Both have raised temperatures, redness around the ears and difficulty with swallowing. No evidence of a raised rash, but can you check them over just to be sure?"

Tom nodded, taking them into resus, while Jeff led Polly to the seating area so he could check her over. Once he was satisfied she was okay, he turned his attention to Alex "Why didn't you ring me as soon as she fell? You're a policeman, not a paramedic! Don't you know how serious a head injury can be?!"

Alex was about to answer when Polly stopped him "Jeff, leave him alone; I'm fine! He was about to when Issy started screaming, so he was a little bit busy…"

"No, you're right, Polly. I'm sorry Alex. I just don't want to see her get hurt again, you know?"

Alex simply nodded, stunned by Jeff's outburst. He was about to reply when Tom came out of resus and over to them.

"Polly?"

"Yep?"

"Good news, it's not meningitis. They both have a middle ear infection, although Isabel's is more pronounced. I've checked them both over fully and once I've given you some prescriptions for them, you're free to go home"

"Okay, thanks Tom!"

"Just doing my job" he smiled "now they will each need to have one spoonful twice a day and…" he gave her the prescriptions and details, and then let them go home again.

Alex made his apologies and left, he had to be on shift in a few hours time.

"Right, shall we go home, Pol? Get these two to bed, and hopefully to sleep"

"Yeah! And I'm tired, too, I might go to bed as well" she laughed, making Jeff smile.

"He's alright you know" Jeff said "He's good for you"


	32. Chapter 32

Polly closed her eyes while cradling Isabel close to her, "Come on darling... Mummy's tired" Polly yawned whilst trying to calm the young baby down, she had taken her out of the nursery and in to the kitchen away from Nieve so she hopefully wouldn't wake her up as well; the last thing she needed right now was two screaming babies.

Isabel continued to wail, her cries getting louder and higher in pitch, despite the soothing words of her mother. Polly cursed under her breath when she heard her phone start to ring and Nieve start to cry from upstairs in the nursery. She picked it up from the table on the side of the room, looking at the caller on the screen she saw it was Alex.

She did feel sorry for him in a way, like she could sort of relate to him, she knew where he was coming from; but what did he mean when he said he had been sexually abused? She had been intrigued when she has seen the hurt and sadness flare up in his eyes when he spoke about it, maybe she could help him? If he would let her in?

Polly answered it, what did he want? "Hello?"

"Polly, its Alex. Everything okay?"

"No, both of the twins are screaming; Isabel hasn't stopped crying all night and now Nieve's at it as well"

"Okay, silly question"

"Yeah, maybe a bit!"

"Listen, I can't come over now, I'm on a break from work. But I can come over when I finish if you want? Give you a hand?"

"Thanks Alex; that would be great"

"No problem" Polly could almost hear his smile down the phone.

"Right, I'd better go. See you later" she said, and hung up, placing it down on the table and checking on Isabel before going to see Nieve.

"Heya Nieve" she cooed, walking over to the cot where Nieve was "What's the matter with you then? Your sister's downstairs, she's crying too. Shall we go and see her?" picking her daughter up, she started to walk back down the stairs and in to the kitchen. She checked the time and sighed "You two are going to like me even less in a minute, it's time for your medicine" grabbing the prescription from the counter she took the medicine out, measuring it carefully, she gave it to Nieve who turned her head away and tried to spit it out, not liking the bitter taste of it and put her head on her mother's shoulder to be comforted "Good girl, Nieve, almost done" she smiled at her. She got the ear drops and put the required amount in each ear, making the young baby start to cry again, tugging at her ears.

She then placed Nieve down and after sterilising the spoon, picked up Isabel, who was still crying, and gave her the medicine. Unsurprisingly, she got the same reaction as she had got from Nieve, although Isabel's movements were slower and jerkier than that of her sister. She smiled when Isabel tried to wipe her ear on her mother's top to get rid of the cold liquid, but not managing to do so.

Polly went to put her down so that she could get a drink of water; she was starting to feel unwell herself and was wondering if she was coming down with something; Isabel, however, was having none of it, clinging as tightly as she could to her mother, clearly wanting some comfort and reassurance from her.

"Issy, come on, Mummy's not well either. Let me put you down for a minute…" she was interrupted by a knock at the door which brought her back to reality again, and placed her in her highchair while she went to answer the door.

Walking down the hallway, she felt dizzy and unsteady on her feet, but kept going until she reached the door. She opened it to see Avani stood there, smiling at her friend "Hi Polly!" she greeted her cheerfully, but frowning when she saw how pale she was "are you alright? You don't look too good, come on, come and sit down…" Avani said, linking her arm through Polly's to support her.

Polly closed her eyes, trying to keep her balance. She opened her mouth to answer her friend, but thought better of it. She tightened her grip on Avani's arm, feeling like she was going to fall over.

Avani moved quickly, leading her into the living room and helped her to sit down while she got a drink for her. Walking into the kitchen, she saw the girls "Hiya girls! I'll be back in a minute to see you, just hang on a minute while I make sure Mummy's okay"

"You alright Pol?" she asked, handing her the glass of water; although she could see by the way her hands were shaking that she wasn't.

"The room's spinning" Polly muttered "I feel like I'm going to be sick"

"Do you think you're going to be sick now?" Polly managed a tiny nod, and Avani grabbed a bowl from the next room and gave it to her, looking the other way as she was violently sick a few times in to it, then put it on the floor "Polly? Is Dixie at home? Or Jeff? Do you want me to ring them?"

"Dixie" she said, and Avani understood what she meant. Getting her phone out of her pocket, Polly texted a quick message to Alex to say she was ill as well so not to come over, and Avani rang Dixie.

"Hi Dixie" she said when she picked up "Its Avani. Listen, I'm with Polly, she's not well, and as you probably know, both the girls are ill as well. Can you come over?"

"Yep, I'll be there in 10 minutes, tops" Dixie replied, putting on her coat and shoes and heading to the car.

She arrived at the house soon after, and knocked at the door. She was greeted by Avani, who showed her where Polly was, while she went to check on the girls.

"Hey sweetheart" Dixie smiled, going and sitting down next to her "I hear you're not feeling too good, eh? Alright if I take a look?" she placed her hand on Polly's forehead and quickly realised she had a fever "You're burning up, aren't you love?" Polly opened her eyes, murmuring something that Dixie couldn't understand. "Alright, Polly, alright darling, we'll take care of you. Shall we get you into bed, make you more comfortable? Avani, can you give me a hand please?"

"Yep. How is she?" she said, taking Polly's other arm and helping her up the stairs to her room.

"Not great. She's got a fever, so I'll have to stay with her in case she gets any worse; I can't understand a word she's saying" Polly had started her rapid murmuring again, although this time it was more frantic and tears ran down her face. Dixie felt sorry for her; she was clearly delirious and confused. "Shh, shh, shh, it's alright" she soothed, lying her down and looking directly at her.

"I'm going to check on the girls" Avani said quietly, carefully so as not to alarm Polly.

"Okay, thanks love" she smiled gently at her friend, stroking her hair in an attempt to get her to go to sleep. Polly seemed to be falling asleep when she suddenly sat up, looking around the room in alarm; Dixie wiped her forehead with a cool flannel, then laid her down again, hoping she would fall asleep soon; she looked exhausted; that was probably the reason for being so unwell, she had been doing far too much and her body had had enough. Polly sat up again and reached her arms out to Dixie, leaning against her she began to murmur something incomprehensible, crying when she wasn't understood and thrashing her arms about wildly "Okay, it's okay" Dixie said, rocking her gently in an attempt to calm her; after a few minutes, Polly had calmed down a little, but was still crying and was quite distressed, not sure where she was or what was going on. "That's better, good girl. That's it, it's alright darling; I've got you, it's okay. You just relax Pol, that's a good girl…" Dixie's voice trailed off when she noticed Polly had fallen asleep, her head on her lap; she decided not to move her until she knew that she was properly asleep as she looked comfy.

Meanwhile, Avani had managed to get Nieve to go to sleep and was currently rocking Isabel in her arms whilst walking around the kitchen 'poor baby' she thought 'she's really not well' she gave the young girl some sips of water from her beaker which seemed to help, so she carried on until she pushed it away, then resumed rocking her, smiling as she drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later…

Polly was still sleeping; although her sleep up to this point had been anything but peaceful. On several occasions she had woken up crying, and Avani had come upstairs to see what was happening. Dixie put her hand on the girl's forehead again, and smiled broadly; her fever was starting to break.

Soon after, Polly awoke, drenched in a cold sweat and crying loudly "Shh, shh, shh, alright darling, it's alright. I'm here, I'm right here Pol" she grabbed a clean set of nightclothes and helped her into them; hugging her close to her, she wiped her forehead again. It shouldn't be too long now, she thought.

She was right, after about 45 minutes Polly's fever had broken completely and she was now fast asleep, dressed in the third set of nightclothes that evening. Although her fever had broken, Polly had still been pretty out of it when she had woken up, as though coming round from an anaesthetic; the best thing for her was sleep.

Dixie left the door open and went to tell Avani the good news, leaving Polly to get some much needed sleep "Well, good news; her fever has broken, and she's sound asleep now, so I thought I'd leave her in peace for a while. How are the twins?"

"Ohh, that's brilliant! And they're both asleep as well, Isabel's woken up a few times but I think the medicine must be starting to work" Avani replied, smiling "Do you want a drink, Dixie? Tea? Coffee? Water?"

"Tea please sweetheart. That's good to hear, poor things. I think Polly was just absolutely exhausted, she must have picked that up when she's been out somewhere…"

"There you go"

"Thanks" Dixie sank down into the sofa with her drink, getting tired herself.

2 hours later…

Polly screamed as she woke up, but calmed herself before Dixie came in "Dix?" she muttered weakly, her throat sore "what happened?" she asked, noticing all of the drenched sheets and clothes on the floor from earlier that night but not remembering anything that had happened after Avani came over.

"You weren't well, Polly. Avani came round to see you, and you were acting really strangely, so she called me to come round and take a look at you. By the time I got here, you had developed a fully blown fever and you weren't making any sense; you spent most of the night crying and screaming. You didn't half scare me; I don't mind telling you that, now!" she laughed, seeing her friend's confused expression "I was about to call for an ambulance when your fever finally broke through, but luckily I didn't need to, though you've been fast asleep for about 5 hours now…"

"Sorry" she said, her voice barely above a whisper "I don't remember any of it, but I'm sorry"

"Don't be daft" Dixie smiled, pulling her into a hug "You're better now, that's the main thing. How are you feeling now?"

"Better than I was earlier! My throat hurts, and I've got a bit of a headache, but nothing like it was before"

"Good! Here, drink some more water" she handed Polly the glass of water she had brought up for her, and she drank it down gratefully, feeling instantly better for it "better?" Polly nodded "Good, because you have a visitor"

Polly looked at her questioningly "Who?"

"Alex" she smiled.

"But I told him not to come because I had started to feel unwell…"

"Yeah, and he was worried, so he rang me after Avani did, and I said he could see you once you were feeling a bit better"

"Right. Thanks. How are the girls?"

"They're fine, both fast asleep as we speak, finally!"

There was a knock at the door and Alex came in, rushing over to Polly and smiling at Dixie in gratitude "You alright Polly? I got your text, although it was quite hard to understand at the time!" he showed her the text she had sent him, and she saw what he meant; she could barely make sense of it herself!

"Yeah, I'm better now, thanks Dixie" she smiled, hugging her before she went downstairs to give them some privacy.

"You had me worried for a bit there, Pol" he said, kissing her hand "but I'm glad you're alright now"

"I am too" she laughed, knowing he would look after her. She knew that he had a past that he wasn't proud of, like she did, but he would tell her when he was ready.


	33. Chapter 33

Alex sat with his arm around Polly; realising at this moment how much he loved her. He had a lot in common with her, not just small things like liking the same music and films, but he had sexually abused as a teenager; although it wasn't something he chose to talk about easily.

Noticing she had gone very quiet again all of a sudden he asked her "Pol? Polly? You alright Polly? Pol, speak to me darling?" he got no verbal response from his girlfriend; she was sat up on the bed and had her eyes squeezed tightly shut, as though something was hurting them "Is it the light?" he asked her, hoping to get some kind of response, he was getting worried about her now "Do you want me to turn the light off? Is it hurting your eyes?" he felt for a moment as though he was talking to a child, but decided to turn the lights off anyway just to see if it would help.

Once the light was turned off, Polly breathed a sigh of relief and lay back on the bed, her joints aching and her head pounding. She couldn't focus properly on anything, it was all blurry and the room was spinning again, she could feel herself getting warmer and warmer until everything went black and she lost consciousness.

Meanwhile, Dixie was downstairs with Avani and Polly's two lovely little girls; thankfully, the medicine seemed to be doing its job as both girls were, so far, a lot calmer than they had been the previous day. She had been relieved to see Polly feeling better again so soon, but she was also worried; she knew that it wasn't uncommon for people to have recurring fevers, especially after drug use. The first fever she had had been a horrible one, and Dixie couldn't help thinking that another one might be on its way…

After a few minutes chatting to Avani and playing with the twins, Dixie heard a scream from Polly's room and Alex's voice, trying to calm her down "Polly? Polly, it's alright love, it's only me, its okay. What's wrong?"

"Everything alright?" Dixie questioned, keeping her voice calm even though she suspected that she already knew what was causing her friend to act so strangely "do you want to just stand back a minute mate, let me have a look at her? Thanks" she put her hand on her forehead and sighed, her fever was back with a vengeance and it had come on quickly as well, she thought "Okay, we need to get her into the ED"

"I'll call an ambulance…"

"No, no there's not time Alex, you unlock the car and me and Avani will bring her downstairs"

After a few minutes, Polly was in the car with Dixie sat next to her, while Avani looked after the girls. Alex started the engine of the car while Dixie tried to keep her friend calm by stroking her hair and squeezing her hand. All the way to the ED, Polly had been crying out and screaming in her delirium and feverish state, by the time they got there she was hysterical, neither Dixie or Alex able to console the frightened young woman.

"Come on, Pol, let's go inside" Dixie said, taking a firm hold of Polly's hand and trying to lead her in, but to no avail. She spotted Sam walking across the car park and called over to her "Sam! Can we get a wheelchair over here please?" she asked as Polly suddenly collapsed, and only didn't hit her head on the floor or the safety railings because of the two people either side of her, holding her upright.

"Yep, coming Dixie!" she replied, rushing over to them "what happened?" she asked, spotting Polly's flushed complexion.

"She's got a fever and a bad one at that, second one in 12 hours but this one is already much worse" Dixie started to explain "first one lasted about 8 hours in total, but it broke naturally. Right, her temperature's 41.5 degrees, she's delirious, confused, vomiting…"

"Right, bring her in" Sam smiled, but jumped as Polly started to wail loudly and grabbed hold of her arm, wanting some reassurance; she didn't know where she was or what was going on and she was frightened. "Alright, Polly, let's get you sorted" she said, regaining her composure and switching into doctor mode as she wheeled her into the ED, Polly still having a tight grip on her hand.

"Thanks Sam" Dixie said, smiling at her friend who was now screaming as loudly as she could, hitting her head against the back of the wheelchair, trying to get her attention but not knowing how to. Sam stopped for a moment, and Polly quickly reached her arms out to Dixie, wanting to be carried; she obliged, scooping her into her arms and continuing to walk; if it was comforting the young girl, then she was happy to carry her the short distance to HDU, she didn't weigh that much anyway, being a slim build. She hoped Alex was alright, he had come with them, but now he had gone to the staff room, seemingly scared of the hospital ward.

"No problem, just doing my job. She's really not well, is she? How about we go to into HDU where it's quieter, there's no-one in there at the moment so she won't disturb anyone…"

Polly had calmed herself a little now, sobbing quietly as Dixie carried her and wrapping her arms tightly around her neck, clearly happier when she had the physical contact as reassurance.

Back at the house, Avani had just given the girls their medicine and some formula milk and was settling them down to go to sleep. She was really worried about Polly, but Dixie had promised to ring as soon as she knew anything. She just wanted them to find out what kept making Polly have the fevers, and do something to stop them for her; it must be horrible for her, Avani thought, not knowing what was happening to her…

"Here we are" Sam announced, leading them into the HDU that was empty apart from a few members of staff wandering in and out from time to time to collect odds and ends of paperwork "If you'd like to put her down, I'll take a proper look at her"

"Okay" Dixie tried to put her down, but Polly clung to her, crying and desperately trying to reach back out to her when she was laid down on the bed "Alright, sweetheart, it's alright" Dixie felt awful, she hated seeing Polly so upset.

Sam attempted to take a closer look at her but Polly was having none of it, wriggling away from her and banging her head against the bed railings in her frustration "Right, we're not going to get anywhere while she's so wound up, but I don't want to sedate her unless it's absolutely necessary…Dixie, do you want to sit with her on the bed, see if that calms her down a bit?"

"Yeah, sure" Dixie put down one side of the bed and sat down next to Polly, who immediately moved so that she could lean against her, tears streaming down her face as she once more murmured something incomprehensible and no-one understood her "Shh, shh, shh, it's alright, Polly, it's okay" Dixie's soothing words did little to calm her and she started her rapid muttering again, getting increasingly upset and frustrated. Her arms thrashed about wildly as she tried to figure out what was happening.

In the staff room, Alex was sat staring into space; he was worried about Polly, but he didn't really like hospitals…

"Okay, this should help a bit" Sam said, producing a needle "I can't give her anything to stop the fever, unfortunately, but this should help her to feel a little bit better"

"What is it?" Dixie asked, as she tried to hold Polly still while Sam inserted the canular into her hand.

"Her blood levels of zinc are exceptionally low; I'm going to send the readings to the lab for a confirmation, but I suspect that Polly may have a zinc defiency disorder. If she does have this, it would explain a lot of things that are mentioned in her notes; struggling to gain weight, the spells of dizziness and sickness, and it could have all been triggered by the drugs she was given, seeing as we don't know what they were"

"So, what are you saying? Could this zinc deficiency have caused the fevers?"

"In extreme cases, yes; it's her body's way of telling her that something isn't right. And Polly's set of readings are the lowest I've ever seen in a patient; I'm amazed that she's done as well as she has for so long"

"Right, okay, thanks Sam" Dixie smiled, turning her attention back to Polly, who although still delirious and feverish, was a bit calmer than she had been before, and was now sleeping, her head resting on Dixie's lap. Polly stirred after a few minutes, muttering something that Dixie couldn't make out, then fell asleep again.

Half an hour later…

"Results are back! Sam said "and it was a zinc deficiency disorder, it's no wonder she's been feeling so rubbish lately. I'm going to give her some supplements through the IV line, but then I'll get a prescription sorted for her once she wakes up. Okay?"

"Yeah, that's brilliant, thanks. At least we know what's causing it now!" Dixie put her hand on Polly's forehead "and her fever's starting to break as well" as if on cue, Polly woke up, crying loudly, but was quickly soothed when she realised that there was somebody there with her and fell asleep again.

Avani had just finished changing Nieve when her mobile rang; luckily, both girls were awake already. She saw that it was Dixie and answered it "Hi Dixie. What's happening? Is Polly alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, she's on the mend. And better still, they know what's been causing it."

"Oh, really, what?"

"She has a zinc deficiency disorder; basically, her body isn't using the zinc from her diet the way it should be, but there are supplements she can get on prescription"

"Well that's good to hear! Right I'd better go, I'll see you later"

"Bye Avani"

"Bye"

Polly awoke, drenched in a cold sweat and crying loudly, confused and not recognising where she was. Dixie heard her and came over, gently but firmly grabbing hold of her flailing arms and speaking softly to her to try and calm her "Shh, shh, shh, it's alright Polly, it's alright" she said, ushering Sam over to them

"Everything alright?" she queried "How's she doing?"

"Yeah, can you get her a spare gown or something please?"

"Yep, there you go"

"Thanks" Dixie replied, helping Polly into it and then holding her close to her, stroking her hair "It's okay, it's okay…"

Much to everyone's relief, Polly quickly fell asleep again, and Dixie took the opportunity to find Alex and let him know how his girlfriend was while Sam stayed with her "Alex?" she called, seeing him sat in the staffroom alone "You alright?"

"Hmm…oh hi, Dixie. Yeah I'm okay, I just don't really like hospitals" Dixie gave him a searching look, as if to ask why he didn't like hospitals so he continued "Had a few bad experiences in hospital when I was younger. Or rather, I had a few bad experiences that led to me ending up in hospital…"

"Right. Sorry, mate, I didn't know…"

"Don't apologise, you weren't to know. How is she?"

"She's a lot better, her fever is starting to break through as we speak. They know what's been causing all this, too"

"What's that, then?" it was Alex's turn to give her a searching look now.

"Polly has a zinc deficiency disorder. But, luckily, there are supplements that she can get on prescription that will sort out the balance"

"Well, at least we know what it is now"

"Yeah, bless her. She'll be waking up soon, do you want to come and see her?" Dixie encouraged "she's in HDU"

"Alright then, let's go"

"Great" Dixie smiled warmly at him, leading him in to HDU where Polly was sleeping peacefully "how is she, Sam?"

"She's doing really well" the young doctor smiled at her relieved expression "her fever completely broke a few minutes ago. Now, I've given her another small dose of zinc through her IV line just to help her body out a bit, which should be enough until I can get her prescription sorted"

As Dixie went over to her, Polly opened her eyes and looked at her, reaching out her arms to her for a hug. Dixie held her for a moment until she let go then asked "How are you feeling now, Pol?"

"Better than I was, headache's gone" she replied, smiling "I don't remember anything, though…"

"Well, that's something then. Listen, Pol, Sam did some blood tests earlier and…"

"And what?"

"Well, we know why you've been feeling so unwell recently. You have a zinc deficiency disorder"

"I have a what?"

"A zinc deficiency disorder" Dixie repeated, smiling "your body isn't using the zinc that you get from your diet properly; but Sam's going to write you up a prescription for some supplements that'll help with that"

Polly was about to reply when Alex added "Good news, yeah?" rushing over to her and hugging her.

"Yeah" she almost laughed, stunned for a moment to see him there "what are you doing here?"

"You don't remember before, at home?"

"No, why, what happened?"

"That doesn't matter now; I was there when your fever came back and I came into the hospital"

"Thanks, for coming with me, I know you don't like hospitals…"

"I was worried about you"

"Right, you two, I'll leave you in peace. I'll see you in a bit Pol"

"Thanks Dixie, for looking after me. Are the girls alright?"

"Yeah, Avani's with them, they're fine. Jeff was going to go round and help her as well" Dixie went out of HDU and into the staffroom to get a drink.

"Alex?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you" Polly said quietly, not quite meeting his gaze.

"I love you too" he said, kissing her gently on the lips and looking into her eyes "It's about time I told you about my past; you've been so open with me. I was sexually abused as a teenager, by my dad's new girlfriend at the time; she didn't like sharing him with me. When he found out, he was furious, he kicked her out, but it doesn't stop it from hurting" he paused for a moment before adding "Listen, Polly, I know it hasn't been that long, but if you'd like me to, I'd like to move in. That way, I can help you with the girls"

"Alex, I'm so sorry; I know how hard it is. And it's been 3 months" she replied, considering his offer "and I would like you to move in. I'd rather not be on my own all the time…I've been thinking, too. Dixie and Jeff think of me as their daughter and I know they'll make the best grandparents to these kids! Avani will be like their aunt, I'm their mum, but…"

"But they don't have a father" Alex finished for her "Polly, how would you feel about me adopting the girls?"

"I'd like that. No, in fact I would love it, and so will they! Thank you!"

"You're welcome, darling, you deserve it and so do the girls"

Polly smiled a beaming smile that made her eyes sparkle, making Alex laugh. Things were going to be alright from now on.


	34. Chapter 34

Dixie opened the front door to Polly's house and was quickly greeted by Avani, who was holding Isabel in her arms "Hi Polly! Are you better now? I was so worried about you!"

"Hiya, yeah I'm feeling a lot better now thanks; better than I have been feeling for a while anyway!" on hearing her mother's voice, Isabel started to cry, she wanted to be with her "Hey Issy, have you been a good girl for Avani?" in response from her daughter, she received a wet, gummy kiss on her neck as she picked her up and cradled her to ensure that her head was supported while she held her.

"Yeah she's been no trouble, have you petal? Nieve's still asleep, but she should be waking up soon…do you want a drink, Pol? Dixie, Jeff, Alex?" everyone said what they wanted and Avani and Alex went to make some drinks while Polly stayed with Dixie and Jeff, and, of course, Isabel, who was babbling away to herself, quite content just to be held or sat on her mother's knee, every so often reaching out to play with her hands.

"You feeling better now then, Pol?" Jeff asked her, smiling "We were all really worried about you, you know"

"Yeah I'm fine now, honestly. A bit tired, but much better than I was; I think the supplements must be starting to have a positive effect already…"

"Well, so long as you're getting better, that's the main thing" Dixie said quickly, not wanting this to turn into a lecture on not doing too much on her first day out of hospital.

Avani and Alex came in with the drinks and handed them out, then Polly went and sat next to her boyfriend, resting against him, she let Jeff hold Isabel and smiled as he bounced her gently up and down on his knee until she finally fell asleep again and he put her down on her play mat and covered her with a blanket so that she could have a nap.

After a while, everyone noticed that Polly was getting tired, and one by one, they made their excuses and left the room, so that just Polly and Alex remained in there with the two sleeping girls.

"You alright babe?" he asked her, smiling when he found out the reason that she hadn't replied; she had fallen asleep on him, her drink still in her hand. He moved the glass and put it on the table, watching her sleep for a few moments. Then he moved her so she could lie down properly and covered her with the colourful throw that was hanging on the back of the sofa.

Seeing Nieve start to wake up and start wriggling, he scooped her up before she began to cry and took her through into the kitchen where everyone else was "She alright?" Dixie asked.

"Yeah, she's just still tired I think. She fell asleep and I didn't want to wake her up"

"Good man. Let her sleep, but not for too long otherwise she won't get any sleep tonight"

"Ooh, listen to you, Miss Doctor" Jeff mocked, sticking his tongue out at her and laughing.

"Shut up Jeffrey, I am a paramedic not a doctor. And besides, it's true, she won't sleep tonight if she sleeps all afternoon…" she replied, giggling and poking him while Avani just rolled her eyes at the pair of them, making them laugh even more.

Nieve started to fuss, squirming because she wanted to be put down. Alex laid her down on the floor and she immediately rolled onto her stomach and started to pull herself, slowly and quite clumsily along the floor until she reached the living room where her mother was. It took her 20 minutes, but she did it; the young baby was doing very well, meeting all of her developmental milestones so far, and sometimes even exceeded them, amazing everyone, including her doctor who had been unsure if she would ever be able to sit unsupported, let alone attempt to crawl. Her sister had more problems physically, she had been much more severely affected by the cerebral palsy and, at nearly 6 months old, was only just to holding her head up.

Nieve sat down by the sofa that Polly was lying on, although now she was awake. Spotting her instantly, Polly stood up and grabbed her, spinning around with her, first close to her and then at arm's length, making the young baby giggle and squeal with delight.

Alex heard the giggling from both mother and daughter and came in, happily sitting on the sofa and watching them play and enjoy each other's company. He couldn't wait for the adoption papers to come through so that he could be a legal guardian to the girls, and Polly was equally excited. Then he glanced over at Isabel, who was still sleeping, and walked over to Polly, kissing her. "I can't wait for us to be a proper family" he said, there was warmth in his words and she knew that he had meant every word.


	35. Chapter 35

Polly and Alex were ecstatic; the letter confirming that Alex could adopt Isabel and Nieve and become their legal guardian.

On hearing a knock at the door; Polly jumped up and went to answer it; it was Dixie.

"Hiya! Come on in!" she greeted her, nearly knocking her friend over by the strength of her hug.

"I'd be more than happy to, if you get off me!" Dixie laughed, pulling away so she could look at her "what am I missing here? What's the good news then?"

"All will be revealed…come on, come in, you're letting the cold air in!" Polly moaned, shivering.

"Alright, alright, I'm in. Now spill"

"I'd be really happy to, but I can't…"

"Why not?"

"Because Alex needs to tell you…Alex!" Polly shouted, momentarily that both of her daughters had been fast asleep "Bugger, I'd better go and get Issy up, now that she's awake" she said, going to get her daughter and returning quickly afterwards with a crying baby "Go back to sleep, Issy…go on, go back to sleep for Mummy…"

"Right, I'm here, why were you yelling?" Alex asked, smiling at her.

"Because you need to tell Dixie…"

"Tell Dixie what?"

"Tell her our news…"

"What news?"

"Alex…" Polly frowned at him "You know full well what I mean!"

"I do? Ohh yeah, that news…the adoption stuff has all cleared and I am now Isabel and Nieve's legal father"

"Ahh, congratulations you two!" Dixie said, smiling at them both "and how are you doing, Pol?"

"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better now, thanks"

"That's good to hear"

"Yeah…" she was stopped from saying anything else by her daughter's shrill cry; Polly knew instantly that she was bored "Come on then, you, let's go play!" she laughed, sitting down on the floor and watching as Isabel managed to pull herself up on her arms and crawl slowly towards her mother, grabbing her hands in an effort to get her to pick her up.

Polly stood up with her, spinning her round and round until she was dizzy, then collapsed onto the sofa giggling while her baby daughter babbled and giggled with her, delighted with the new game. Her development had really come on in the last few weeks, and she was now more or less physically where she should be for her age.

Looking around at the people around her, including Jeff and Avani who had come in earlier, and Alex who was holding Nieve, Polly smiled. She hadn't felt this happy in a long time, and it was fantastic for her to have all of her friends around her, as well as her boyfriend and two beautiful baby girls. She knew that from now on, things could only keep on getting better and better.

**A/N this is the final chapter for A new chapter, thanks for all the reviews throughout it! I might continue this in a sequel; what do people think? xx**


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